The former National Chairman of Nigeria’s ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) Abdullahi Adamu, says the botched presentation of Ahmad Lawan as the party’s preferred candidate was not done unilaterally.
Mr Adamu stated this during an interview published by Daily Trust on Sunday.
PREMIUM TIMES had reported that Mr Adamu told a meeting of the National Working Committee (NWC), ahead of the presidential primary in June 2022, that then-President Muhammadu Buhari had picked Mr Lawan as his preferred candidate.
However, APC governors opposed the move and backed the power shift to the South. Mr Lawan later emerged fourth in the primary election.
Mr Adamu, who resigned as the chairman of the ruling party in July, said as a northerner, he wanted a northern candidate but maintained that the decision on the former senate president was not his sole decision.
“The party chairman has a role, but with a ruling party, I could not take it on myself to float Ahmed Lawan’s name.
National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Abdullahi Adamu.
Former National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Abdullahi Adamu.
“I am curious because everybody put it on you. Well, of course, I take responsibility as party chairman, but nobody with maturity in politics and governance will say that Abdullahi Adamu, as the chairman of the party, would just get up and say this is my presidential candidate. It doesn’t add up.
“From my consultations, and from the advice I was getting, I am a northerner and I would go for a northerner; and no apologies for that. I have never hidden this,” he said.
Mr Adamu refused to name others who supported his decision to name Mr. Lawan but said that he was concerned about winning the presidential election.
“To be honest with you, that was my inclination. I wanted to win the election. I never lost an election and I saw what was going on in the country. But of course, party leadership is a collective responsibility,” he said.
Mr Adamu also spoke about his emergence as the national chairman of the party against the wish of the APC governors. He said the APC governors did not include his name in the 10-man list submitted to the president.
“The governors had their agenda and they didn’t see me playing to it. They wanted the presidency to go down South. And if they don’t get the presidency, at least one of them will get the vice president. That was the calculation.
“Anyway, they jotted about 10 names but didn’t send it. They came to the meeting with it. When they presented the list, Buhari asked for my name, saying I was always making contributions in the Senate. He picked a pen from his chest pocket and wrote Senator Abdullahi Adamu on top of their list. That was supposed to be an indication of his interest.
“But the governors continued with all manner of criticism, including that I was too old for the chairmanship,” he said. [Premium Times]
