By Olusegun Olanrewaju
For the 2023 presidential race in Nigeria, it appears it is not yet Uhuru for the nation’s leading parties who think it will be a two-horse fight for the presidency.
The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) is grappling with its joint Muslim ticket that has continued to elicit negative reactions across the country, while the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has been having a running battle between its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, and the Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, over the choice of Dr Ifeanyi Okowa, as running mate.
The task of breasting the APC and the PDP, from all indications, is being somehow challenged by the radical posturing of a third political force in the Labour Party (LP), whose presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has been busy trying to explore new tactics to an advantage.
Before now, it appeared that the usual game of direct baton-passing between the two octopus parties (APC and PDP) would have been easier if they could, as usual, exploit the ethno-religious fault lines of the nation’s body politic to hijack power.
But Obi, it appears, is trying to redefine the same tendency to plot a new trajectory. It is not clear how far, though, this can go in the face of other potent considerations in Nigeria’s brand of politics, particularly vote-buying.
•Pro-Wike group meets in Abuja, may give conditions for resolutions of impasse
After several banters between supporters of Atiku and Wike, yesterday, a crucial meeting of the governors who coordinated the Rivers State governor’s presidential race ticketing was held in Abuja.
Those at the meeting include the Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, his Abia, Benue, and Enugu states counterparts, Okezie Ikpeazu, Samuel Ortom, and Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi respectively.
Also present were some former governors such as Donald Duke (Cross River), Gabriel Suswam (Benue), Olusegun Mimiko (Ondo), Seriake Dickson (Bayelsa), Ibrahim Idris (Kogi), and Jonah Jang (Plateau)
Addressing journalists after the meeting, a former Minister of Information, Prof Jerry Gana, said the group met to review developments for the first time after the recently concluded presidential primaries which produced Atiku as the inner.
Gana said, “We have frankly reviewed matters among ourselves; we want to confirm we are solidly together as a group. We also want to let the nation know that we shall keep our people briefed as developments unfold. We are very delighted to have had this meeting to exchange views to review matters, and we know that developments would unfold and as they do, we shall honestly and properly brief the nation.”
However, ThisNigeria learnt from a credible source that the pro-Wike group met to strategise to give conditions to the Atiku group as a precursor to reconciliation.
A source at the meeting, which was held at the Rivers Governors’ Lodge in Abuja, told ThisNigeria that the Atiku group could no longer be trusted until a concrete agreement to reintegrate both groups was reached going by the breach which led to the emergence of Okowa as Atiku’s running mate.
The source said, “Yes, we have to agree on salient issues in concrete terms as part of the reintegration move. Agreed, we are not leaving the PDP, but the other group has proved not to be trusted when it comes to keeping to agreements. Look at the way the running mate issue was handled. Going forward, we have to agree in concrete terms on issues.”
It was learnt that yesterday’s meeting may have countered insinuations that the reconciliation moves with the Wike group were having headway.
Recall that earlier on Friday, Wike said Atiku allegedly made false statements during his recent interview on Arise TV.
The Rivers State governor also confirmed that contrary to reports, the former vice-president was yet to begin a reconciliation move despite claims on pages of newspapers that a committee had been set up to meet with him.
“He (Atiku) appeared on Arise Television, see the statement he made. So many lies were told and you said I should not react to some of those issues. That would not be fair,” Wike claimed.
•Northern Christian APC, CAN reaffirm opposition to joint Muslim ticket
Also, the crisis in the ruling APC over the joint Muslim ticket has continued to rage as a group under the aegis of Northern Christians and the Christian Association of Nigeria in the 19 Northern states rejected in totality the party’s stance.
The party’s flagbearer, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, and his running mate, Senator Shettima Kashim, are finding it difficult convincing Christians across the country and particularly those from of the northern extraction to vote for them in the 2023 poll because of the Muslim-Muslim ticket.
The Christian leaders have vowed that no Christian would vote for the present arrangement of the APC.
At a press conference in Kaduna yesterday, Secretary-General of CAN, Sunday Oibe, reaffirmed its opposition to the Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket of the APC ahead of the 2023 presidential election.
He congratulated the newly elected president of CAN, Rev Daniel Oko while pledging the association’s unalloyed loyalty to him.
He said, “First of all, on behalf of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in the 19 Northern States and the Federal Capital Territory, we congratulate the newly elected National President of CAN, Rev. Dr Daniel Oko, and his vice, Rev Dr Stephen Baba Panyam.
“We encourage them to stand firm like Joshua in the Bible in these difficult times to be the real voice for the Church in Nigeria. We pledge our unalloyed support in all areas to help them succeed.
“We reaffirm our stand against the idea of a Muslim-Muslim ticket in a multi-religious and multi-cultural society like Nigeria, particularly because the country has never been this divided along religious and ethnic lines before.
“Northern CAN wants to use this medium to call on politicians and political parties to be wary of those who might sneak to meet them secretly like Nicodemus in the name of Christian leaders from the north, with the sole aim of whetting their political appetite and desperation for monetary gains.
“Northern CAN, as a reputable religious organisation, will never engage in any secret dealing with any politician as a matter of policy.
“However, our doors are open to any Nigerian who desires to share with us ideas on moving the country forward. Northern CAN, like many individuals and groups, is deeply concerned about the helpless security situation in the country.”
Oibe also expressed the concern of the association on the intractable insecurity ravaging the entire country.
According to the CAN’s scribe, if the bloodthirsty terrorists could threaten to abduct President Muhammadu Buhari, and the Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir el-Rufai, adding that nobody in the country was safe.
He, therefore, urged the President to rise to the occasion by living up to his constitutional responsibility of protecting the lives and property of citizens and defending the sovereignty of Nigeria.
The CAN scribe added that the presidency and the National Assembly should stop living in denial as the country was on the verge of collapse, saying that urgent and proactive steps must be taken to save the situation as “Nowhere is safe!”.
We urge all well-meaning Nigerians to unite and pray fervently for the country and the defeat of the enemies of the Nigerian state.”
Earlier on Friday, the Chairman of a gathering of Christians drawn from the 19 Northern states and former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Babachir Lawal, noted that the Muslim-Muslim ticket was an extension of the exclusion of Christians from the scheme of things in the country.
He, however, stressed that the measure would disrupt the peace and social development of the country, he argued that the Muslim-Muslim ticket remains part of the subterranean plot to Islamise the country.
Babachir who gave a detailed reference to the marginalisation of Christians in the APC NWC, Federal executive council (FEC), and state and federal-owned institutions of learnings in the country, charged Christians in not only the north but the entire country not to be deceived the APC leadership on the joint Muslim ticket since matters of religion could not be divulged from the politics of the country.
Similarly, a former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, who spoke in the same vein, described as “hogwash” the argument that the choice of Shettima was based on consideration of competence rather than his religious leanings.
•Peter Obi plots to harvest from rumblings in big parties
To demonstrate his rising profile, the former Anambra State government has been undertaking high-profile visits to churches nationwide (his running mate, Dr Datti Baba-Ahmed is a Northern Muslim, so he beats the trap of religious non-diversity).
One such visit was to the headquarters of the Pentecostal church, Dunamis International Gospel Centre.
A massive congregation cheered the LP presidential candidate upon his visit, on Friday, to attend “the Judgment Praise Night with Pastor Paul Enenche.”
He had also recently visited the Bishop of the Living Faith Church, David Oyedepo, and a former President, Olusegun Obasanjo to garner support.
