2019: UPP Adopts Buhari

The United Progressive Party, UPP, has adopted President Muhammadu Buhari as its presidential candidate for the 2019 General Elections.

The party said it took the decision to endorse President Muhammadu Buhari after a meeting of its National Executive Committee held on August 17 because he “towers head and shoulder above Alhaji Atiku Abubakar in integrity and in all other considerations.”

The National Chairman of UPP, Chief Chekwas Okorie, who announced the endorsement during a press conference held in Abuja, said the resolution to adopt Buhari had been made easy by the Peoples Democratic Party, which elected former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar as its presidential candidate for the 2019 polls.

He said, “We wish to state at the onset that our great party, the UPP received a number of invitations for the purpose of forming a coalition for the 2019 Presidential Election. Delegations of our party honoured virtually all the invitations and submitted their reports to the National Working Committee.

“Having considered the reports of the delegations that represented the party in the various alliance/coalition meetings, NEC mandated the NWC to continue with exploring the best coalition option for our party and in the overall interest of majority of the Nigerian people.

“After a painstaking evaluation of all the options and in consideration of the sincerity, uprightness and credibility of President Muhammadu Buhari, which he has brought to bear in his approach to governance for the past three and half years, the NWC of the party, acting on behalf of the NEC, after extensive consultations with all stakeholders in the party wish to announce to the Nigerian public that President Muhammadu Buhari (GCFR) has been endorsed and adopted as our presidential candidate for the 2019 presidential election.”

Similarly, an all women political group in Katsina State, known as ‘Mata Zalla’ on Tuesday said it had begun to mobilise women across Nigeria to ensure the re- election of President Muhammadu Buhari and All Progressives Congress.

Mata Zalla coordinator, Saratu Sa’a, made the declaration in Katsina at a press conference.

She said, “Our aims and objectives are to gather more support for the APC as a political party to win all elective positions across the country.”

Sa’a said members of the group and their partners had already commenced mobilisation across the country to ensure victory for President Buhari’s victory at the polls, adding, “We are up to the task and we shall not fail in our task to ensure APC victory at the polls.