President Muhammadu Buhari has swore before 14 governors of northern states under the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) that he has “no preferred candidate,” and has “anointed no one,” for the presidency for the special National Convention of the party now ongoing in Abuja.
Speaking to the governors today, June 6 at a meeting in the Presidential villa, Abuja, against the background of the announcement by the party’s national chairman, of the choice of the Senate President, Ahmed Lawan as the party’s consensus Presidential candidate, Buhari stressed that he would ensure that there is no imposition of any candidate on the party.
He made it clear that APC as a party, must participate in the primary election to elect a candidate, stressing: “nobody will appoint anybody.”
According to the President, the party is important and its members must be respected, and made to feel they are important.
He said that he had a clear mind about what he was doing and asked the APC governors to feel the same way, saying: “you were elected as I was. Have a clear mind as I have. God gave us the chance; we have no reason to complain. We must be ready to take pain as we take the joy. Allow the delegates to decide.
Earlier in their addresses, the Chairman of the Northern Governors Forum, Governor Simon Bako Lalong and Governor Abubakar Atiku Bagudu of the Progressive Governors Forum, said that they had come to affirm the position of the Northern Governors that the party’s candidate in the presidential election shall come from the southern part of the country.
They apologised to the President for the leakage of their signed memorandum which was not in support of any particular candidate and gave assurances to the President on their readiness to accept his leadership on the matter.
