APC Denies Buhari, Others Automatic Ticket

The leadership of the All Progressives
Congress (APC) at the weekend revealed that
it would not grant any of its leading
presidential aspirants automatic ticket.

ThisDay reports that the disclosure was made
on phone by the party’s National Publicity
Secretary, Alhaji Lai Muhammed, who
explained that the decision was in reaction to
the mounting pressure from certain group
within the party.
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Muhammed was said to have further revealed
that some elements within the party were
agitating for concessions that would favour
former military Head of State, Major-General
Muhammadu Buhari (rtd) as the party’s flag
bearer for the 2015 presidential election.
The national publicity secretary, went ahead to
categorically state that granting an automatic
ticket would never be possible in APC, assuring
that there is nothing like automatic ticket for
anyone, and insisted that party will do no such
thing.
“Most of these people who habour such
thoughts do not have access to the party
leaders, including Tinubu and Buhari. We
intend to showcase our internal democracy. As
a matter of fact, we intend to showcase a
model of internal democracy for other parties
to emulate, “he said.
Muhammed hinted that APC National Working
Committee (NWC) meeting is slated for
Wednesday, where the leadership is expected
to work out the modalities for the party’s
primaries ahead the presidential elections.
It was further gathered that although the party
has rejected the idea of automatic ticket for
any of its candidate, there were speculations
that some interest groups in the opposition
party are taking advantage of the occurrence
to cause controversy since the party is yet to
completely overcome the plot to settle for a
Muslim-Muslim ticket as its presidential
candidate and running mate.
It was also gathered the decision against the
idea of automatic ticket did not go down well
with the supporters of leading presidential
contenders like former Vice-President Atiku
Abubakar, Kano State Governor Ibrahim
Kwankwaso, and Senator Bukola Saraki.
However, a group of loyalists to the former
military head of state have reportedly
continued mounting pressure on the party
leaders to consider granting Buhari
concessions and urge others contenders to
back down and support him.
Meanwhile, a party chieftain who spoke on
condition of anonymity disclosed that the
solicitation for automatic for Buhari was in line
with the merger agreement allegedly reached
between Bola Tinubu’s Action Congress of
Nigeria (ACN) and Buhari’s Congress for
Progressive Change (CPC).
The source said the agreement was to anoint
the party’s standard-bearer without going
through an election, which is obviously not
going well with Kwankwaso, Saraki and Atiku
supporters.
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It would be recalled that the All Progressive
Congress (APC) was formed in February 2013,
through the merger of four Nigeria’s biggest
opposition parties comprising the Action
Congress of Nigeria (ACN), the Congress for
Progressive Change (CPC), the All Nigeria
Peoples Party (ANPP), and the All Progressives
Grand Alliance (APGA) with the aiming of
outing the ruling People’s Democratic Party
(PDP) out of power.
The party which is already having internal
issues in Lagos, on September 3, 2014
experienced the pulling out of the All
Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, as
announced by Prince Adesina Olayokun, the
state’s APGA chairman.
However, the party had earlier announced that
it would start its primary elections in October
2014, to enable them nominate a presidential
candidate for the 2015 general election.