-Ikenna Okafor
The dust may take a while to settle as the race for the All Progressives Party (APC) Chairmanship position hots up. The schemings, lobbyings and speculations began soon after the ruling party’s Deputy National Chairman, Senator Abubakar Kyari declared the immediate resignation of Senator Abdullahi Adamu, the erstwhile chairman of the party.
As it appears, the pendulum is swinging towards two of the party’s bigwigs who are former governor, Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano state and one-time governor of Nasarawa state, Senator Tanko Al Makura.
The former is a strong force to be reckoned with when a political masterclass is being showcased in the north-central region of the country while the latter and Senator Sani Musa of Plateau state stepped down for the former chairman, Abdullahi Adamu at the 2022 National Party convention.
However, some stakeholders are of the opinion that Abdullahi Ganduje is in a better position to spearhead the affairs of the party. In addition, there are huge speculations among the stalwarts of the party that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu wants the former governor of Kano state to fill the vacuum. Unconfirmed reports state that the country’s president earmarked the APC’s chairmanship slot for Abdullahi Ganduje citing that as the reason the party’s national leader dropped his name from the ministerial list, which is now almost set to be announced.
Moreover, Ganduje’s northwest members insist on keeping the mantle of leadership in their geo-political zone while Senator Tanko Al Makura’s supporters are unhappy that Ganduje’s region holds key national positions such as Speaker of the House of Representative, Tajudeen Abass and the deputy senate president, Barau Jibrin.
Undoubtedly, the political imbroglio may go to the wire as none of the two APC political juggernauts will leave no stone unturned in their bid to become the successor to Abdullahi Adamu. Nonetheless, many are watching and waiting patiently, to see how it unfolds in the long run.
