Femi Adesina, the presidential spokesperson, says President Muhammadu Buhari didn’t ask governors of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to pick a consensus presidential candidate.
Speaking at a meeting with APC governors on Tuesday, Buhari said as the second term governors have been “accorded the privilege” of choosing their successors, he would require the support of the party stakeholders in selecting the person who would succeed him.
Reacting to criticisms that trailed the president’s comment, Adesina said Buhari didn’t discuss anything relating to candidate imposition, consensus or zoning with the governors.
He said the president only told the governors of what he will like to see at the forthcoming APC presidential primary.
“President Buhari told them of what he would like to see at the All Progressives Congress (APC) primary to elect a presidential candidate early next week. No word about zoning, consensus, or imposition of candidate.
He just charged them to let their plans converge, so that the party would put its best foot forward. Shortly after the meeting, we headed for the airport,” he wrote in a post on his Facebook page.
“A short time into the about five hours flight, I went on social media, to see that all hell had broken loose. Trust some Nigerians. When there’s no controversy, they simply create one. They will die of boredom if they don’t have something to wail or ululate about.
“What were they bellyaching on? Oh, he used the words ‘my successor,’ instead of ‘APC candidate.’ That means he wants to rig the election. Otiose.
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“Oh, he talked about governors who performed well being given opportunity to get a second term, for continuity. That means he wants to impose someone from within the government to succeed him. Consensus is what he wants. Puerile.
“Is consensus not one of the acceptable ways of choosing candidates, according to the Electoral Act? So the party can jolly well decide on the method it wants. Oh, he didn’t talk about zoning. APC wants to give its ticket to the north. Really? Did you see anything like that in the speech?
“I tell you. When some Nigerians don’t see what they expect in a speech or statement, they simply conjure and create their own. And the wailing starts.”
