North-Central Demands APC National Chairman Slot After Ganduje’s Resignation
The North-Central All Progressives Congress (APC) Forum has called on President Bola Tinubu and other party stakeholders to allow the region produce the next National Chairman of the APC following the resignation of Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje.
In a statement issued in Abuja on Saturday by its Chairman, Alhaji Saleh Zazzaga, a member of the APC campaign council for the 2023 election, the Forum said the party should do the “right thing” by returning the position to the North-Central in the interest of fairness.
“It is on record that the North-Central APC Forum had for long advocated that the party honours the principles of the subsisting zoning arrangement which ceded the position of National Chairman to the North-Central. We agitated that the region be allowed to complete the tenure of former National Chairman, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, even going to court to argue our case,” the statement read.
“But after the ratification of the appointment of Alhaji Abdullahi Ganduje as National Chairman by the National Executive Committee (NEC) in the overall interest of the party, we decided to suspend the agitation. Our decision to suspend the agitation at that time was also informed by the fact that we observed that the APC was moving in the right direction, waxing stronger by the day under Alhaji Abdullahi Ganduje’s leadership as can be demonstrated by the high profile defections to the party, including governors and members of the National Assembly.
“During Alhaji Abdullahi’s time as National Chairman, several governors including those of Delta and Akwa Ibom states, defected to the APC. Also during the period, several members of the Senate and House of Representatives joined the party. It is equally on record that many high profile opposition politicians defected to the APC during Alhaji Abdullahi Ganduje’s leadership.
“Also, the APC, under Alhaji Abdullahi Ganduje, won states that were held by the opposition, particularly Edo State, where APC defeated the incumbent PDP government. Alhaji Abdullahi Ganduje also united the party, ensuring stability in the APC at a time when the major opposition parties were battling series of internal crises. These and more were the reasons we decided to suspend the agitation.
“Now that the Alhaji Abdullahi Ganduje has decided to step aside, we feel it is only fair and just for the party to, finally, do the right thing and allow the North-Central to produce the National Chairman, for the sake of fairness, justice and equity.
“We are therefore appealing to President Bola Tinubu, who we have found to be a listening President, and stakeholders of the party to allow the North-Central to produce the next Chairman of the APC. We also appeal to the President to direct the Acting National Chairman to immediately convene a National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting for the purpose of electing a substantive National Chairman, who will come from the North-Central.
“The resignation of Alhaji Abdullahi Ganduje, who proved himself to be a capable National Chairman, though not what we wished for, has presented the party with a golden opportunity to right the wrongs and correct the injustice done to the North-Central,” the statement added.
The Forum noted that the North-Central gave the APC and President Tinubu the third highest number of votes in the 2023 presidential election, with Tinubu scoring 1,760,993 votes (41.3%), ahead of Labour Party’s Peter Obi who polled 1,415,557 (33.2%) and PDP’s Atiku Abubakar who got 1,025,178 (24.1%).
The group also pointed out that five out of six states in the North-Central are governed by the APC – Benue, Kogi, Kwara, Nasarawa and Niger – while the PDP only controls Plateau State. It said efforts are ongoing to attract Governor Caleb Mutfwang of Plateau into the party.
“We are not asking for the position of National Chairman just as a matter of right – we know that the North-Central has capable personalities that can take the APC to victory in 2023. Allowing the North-Central to produce the National Chairman will not only ensure that the right thing is done, it will ensure ensure the continues on the path of progress and strength. We urge the party stakeholders not to delay in ensuring that the right thing is done,” the Forum concluded.
Titilope Adako is a talented and intrepid journalist, dedicated to shedding light on the untold stories of Osun State and Nigeria. Through incisive reporting, she tackles a broad spectrum of topics, from politics and social justice to culture and entertainment, with a commitment to accuracy, empathy, and inspiring positive change.
