Elections: Powerful forces wanted Jonathan, Emefiele candidacies – APC vice chair

The Evangelist edition
February 8, 2023

The National Vice Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (North-West), Malam Salihu Lukman, on Tuesday, revealed some forces outside the APC were responsible for the failed attempt to foist the candidacy of former president Goodluck Jonathan and Governor of the Central Bank, Dr Godwin Emefiele, to prevent Asiwaju Bola Tinubu from clinching the presidential ticket.

Lukman noted that it took the combined efforts of the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), the National Working Committee and the resilience of the APC governors to abort the move before it came to reality.

The member of the APC National Working Committee and veteran politician made the claim in a statement titled, “Electoral contests and public expectations: Matching hopes with realities.”

Tinubu polled 1,271 votes to defeat former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi; Vice President Yemi Osibanjo and 12 others to clinch the sole ticket.

Osinbajo and Amaechi garnered 235 and 316 votes respectively to emerge second and third at the APC primary in June 2022.
According to him, when it became obvious that the kites of Jonathan and Emefiele would not fly, the masterminds of the plot who were not card-carrying members of the APC positioned the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, for Buhari to anoint as the party’s consensus candidate.

He said, “It may also be important to note that the emergence of Asiwaju Tinubu as the APC’s presidential candidate was the product of strong internal contest. There may be temptation to narrow the contest to the dynamics around the question of whether there will be an anointed aspirant who would have been crowned as the consensus candidate, which wouldn’t have been Asiwaju Tinubu.

“Many had their preferred candidates for the position of national chairman. Some of the presidential aspirants were able to expand their lobbies to some of the influential people around the president and perhaps succeeded to convince President Buhari to nominate Senator Abdullahi Adamu for the position. And shortly after the election of Adamu as the National Chairman of the APC, negotiation for the emergence of a so-called consensus presidential candidate was activated.

“It may also be important to remind Nigerians that the scheming around emergence of a so-called consensus candidate was ridiculously stretched beyond the APC to include people like former President Goodluck Jonathan and Mr. Godwin Emefiele, the Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria.

“These were never members of the APC. But with the active collaboration of some influential people outside the APC, some sophisticated mobilisation of so-called ‘hundred eminent businessmen, political, media and civil society leaders, including 14 current governors, 13 former governors as well as three former senate presidents’ commenced around April 2022.

“Gradually, this scheming shifted and was entrenched within the APC.

“Eventually, when these schemers couldn’t succeed in popularising both Jonathan and Emefiele as possible contenders to emerge as consensus presidential candidates for the APC, the Senate President, Senator Ahmed Lawan was recruited and promoted. It is on record that Adamu, on the eve of the convention that birthed Asiwaju Tinubu as the candidate, announced to the NWC members that Lawan was their consensus candidate of the party.”

Continuing, the Kaduna-based politician explained that aggrieved members of the NWC along with some progressive governors rose against the move.

“This is completely inconsiderate of the popular agitation for power shift in the country. It is also insensitive of the potential instability that the choice of another northerner emerging as president of the country could cause. Ahead of the APC National Convention, the APC governors from the North had already declared their opposition against a northerner emerging as the APC presidential candidate.

“Combinations of all of these in so many ways contributed towards tilting support of many APC leaders towards Asiwaju Tinubu. Certainly, Asiwaju Tinubu’s personal quality given his track records both as a businessman, politician, and elected Governor of Lagos State between 1999 and 2007 were also there. He has over the years proven himself as a fighter for democracy. This is one characteristic that has defined him and perhaps strengthen him to survive many personal attacks on his person and his integrity.

“The administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo investigated him on many of the issues that are being used to smear his name such drugs. Renown radical lawyer and human rights activists, late Chief Gani Fawehinmi challenged his academic credentials unsuccessfully in courts. Many journalists and activists questioned his integrity but were not able to establish any proof.

“Again, thanks to President Buhari, the contest for the presidential candidate of the APC was thrown open and Asiwaju won with a wide merging,” he stated.

When asked to react to the revelation, the Chief Spokesman for Tinubu-Shettima Presidential Campaign Council declined comment.
But the Publicity Director of the APC, Bala Ibrahim, told our correspondent that the party had moved on and wouldn’t like to delve into an issue that could reopen old wounds.

“We have moved on as a party. The emergence of a candidate in politics is a process the party has in place. This process is always followed from the indication of interest and eventual emergence as a candidate. Once a candidate emerges, the onus is on the party to fully support him to win the election.

“Whatever happened before the emergence of Tinubu as the candidate of the APC is something that should left in book of history. Now, he is the candidate of the party and it is the collective will of the same party. Everybody is putting his hands in the deck to see to it that Tinubu is successful. That is also because he is the one now holding the flag of the party.

“I won’t want us digging into the process of manufacturing when the product is ready for the market. Whether Lawan, Emefiele or whover was an aspirant, all those things don’t matter anymore. What matters now is that the entire is supportive of Tinubu. This has been decided at the APC convention. The party has moved on long ago and merely waiting to swear in Tinubu come May 29.”