2015 Presidency: The Choices Before APC Stakeholders

Buhari

 

Atiku 

 

 

 

There is no debate that the All Progressives Congress(APC) presidential ticket will be the most keenly contested ahead of the 2015 general elections. The reason is obvious. A contest that has the former head of state and the masses favourite General Muhammadu Buhari, former vice president and astute political tactician, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and Kano State’s performing governor, Engineer (Dr) Rabiu Kwankwaso among others would be a major headache to APC stakeholders to make a choice that would satisfy everyone because the aforementioned politicians have those who fanatically support them.

If former head of state General Muhammadu Buhari is picked by the stakeholders either at the party’s primary or consensus meeting, he is one candidate that would pose a big challenge to President Goodluck Jonathan and the ruling Peoples Democratic Party(PDP). Buhari’s name on the ballot is likely to guarantee victory for APC in most states of the North East, North West and even parts of the North Central especially in Niger State, where Buhari beat Jonathan by a wide margin in 2011. In Buhari the APC has an aspirant who garnered over 12 million votes without the financial muscle of the ruling party, and who with the financial backing of about 10 states under APC can give Jonathan a run for his money. Buhari is also running on the strength of his integrity and anti-corruption record against a President Jonathan that has been accused of doing little or nothing to reign in alleged corrupt officials in his government.

In choosing Buhari, the APC has also to be mindful of his drawbacks as a candidate. He has been accused of being a religious fanatic who allegedly told his supporters who are mostly Muslims to only vote for Muslim candidates. Even though the General has denied this, there are many who still hold it against him in a country where religion is a sensitive issue and Jihadist groups like Boko Haram are on prowl. Buhari’s chances is not helped by the branding of the APC as a Janjaweed party by the PDP largely because of alleged utterances of Buhari and some of his supporters.

Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, former vice president who had a tumultuous relationship with his principal, President Olusegun Obasanjo between 1999 and 2007 will be contesting for president for the second time if he is chosen as the presidential candidate of the APC this year. He was the presidential candidate of the Action Congress(AC) in 2007 where he lost to the eventual winner, late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua. A founding member of the ruling PDP he returned to the party in 2011 to challenge President Goodluck Jonathan for the PDP ticket. Even though he was able to defeat political heavy weights like former head of state, General Ibrahim Babangida to emerge the northern consensus candidate to fight for the PDP ticket with Jonathan, he lost the primary to Jonathan, losing even his Adamawa State’s delegates’ votes. However if he is to emerge the candidate of APC he is believed to have the financial muscle to challenge the PDP. He is also believed to have structures all over the country to work for his victory. He is also viewed as a detribalised Nigerian who is not fanatical over religion. In fact in the letter he wrote to Buhari welcoming him to the presidential contest Atiku pointedly wrote that Nigeria does not need a religious fanatic as president.

The former vice president may however be a hard sale for APC which seems to hinge its campaign on anti-corruption allegations against the PDP and President Goodluck Jonathan who the party had labelled his government as the most corrupt administration in the history of the country. This is because Atiku has some corruption allegations hanging over his head as vice president, where his principal, President Olusegun Obasanjo accused him of all manners of corruption, some of which was investigated by the National Assembly. It remains to be seen how Atiku can challenge Jonathan over anti-corruption issues when his records was not all that blameless.

The governor of Kano State, Alhaji Rabiu Kwankwaso is among the G7 Governors; that is governors of the PDP who protested against the way the party was going especially the desire by President Goodluck Jonathan to seek a second term in 2015 against the alleged gentleman agreement in 2011 that he would do only one term. He moved over to the APC where he has declared interest to contest for president. He is presently consulting stakeholders of APC and others including Christian leaders in the southern parts of the country soliciting their support. In terms of performance in office, many would attest that he has lifted Kano State to a level where it is the envy of other states especially in the north where the state remains the only state in the north that can pay salaries without depending on allocation from Abuja.

Kwankwaso’s biggest drawback is that he is contesting against two of the biggest political giants in the north today who also have rich CVs on presidential primaries and campaigns and may only be considered if the stakeholders need a new order. Aside that, Kwankwaso like Atiku is a new entrant to APC, and there are many who may use that against the two aspirants who may be seen as being too desperate to take over what ‘rightly belong’ to founding members of APC. As a serving governor there may be enough ‘ammunition’ for the ruling PDP to use against him by unleashing the anti-corruption agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) against him. Recently President Jonathan accused Kwankwanso of allegedly diverting local government allocations of the state. If he emerges the APC candidate this and other corruption issues may come to the front burner.