From Romanus Ugwu, Abuja

Barring any last-minute change in plans, a new national chairman is expected to emerge at the forthcoming National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting scheduled for next week, Thursday, July 24.

Surprisingly, barely one week to the emergence of a national chairman, the build-up activities are yet to generate the usual tension, acrimony and apprehension like in previous exercises where interested aspirants across geopolitical leanings overheat the polity through the deployment of all manner of theatrics and shenanigans to outsmart one another.

Despite what looked like cautious anxiety pervading the ruling party, there has been name-dropping and a clandestine show of interest by party chieftains, amid the general conviction that the Presidency will, as usual, anoint or single-handedly appoint the national chairman.

In retrospect, apart from, perhaps, the National Executive Committee (NEC) elective convention that transparently produced Chief John Odegie-Oyegun, never in the history of the ruling party were its subsequent national chairmen allowed to pass through the crucible of democratic norms or in conformity with the party’s constitutional stipulations.

For example, when Comrade Adams Oshiomhole eventually became the party’s national chairman on June 23, 2018, he contested unopposed and emerged through a voice vote by the delegates at the party’s national convention in Abuja after the Presidency and, perhaps, respected voices allegedly pressured and stampeded Oyegun into withdrawing from the race.

His withdrawal letter, which succinctly captured the intrinsic undercurrent that propelled him to reluctantly bow to pressures, read: “Even though I had the desire to re-contest as national chairman of our party, I have decided that it is ultimately in the best interest of the party for me to withdraw from the race. I believe the party faces difficult days ahead, and all critical stakeholders in the leadership would be required to bind together for a common purpose.

“The less contentious our national convention is, the better for the party. I have always sought to be part of solving the problem for APC; I do not intend to be a part of the problem for APC to solve. It is for this reason that I hereby declare that I will not be seeking re-election as the APC national chairman.”

He further noted that “not only was it within my constitutional right to do so, but I also believe that my experience and ‘familiarity’ with some of the most important issues that must be at the top of our political agenda put me in the best position to lead the party into another election and for another four years.”

Again, the subsequent replacement of Comrade Oshiomhole with the Governor Mai Mala-Buni-led Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee, the facilitation of the eventual emergence of Abdullahi Adamu and what was termed the “autocratic imposition” of Umar Ganduje, which were devoid of any democratic procedure, confirm the impression that the ruling party has always adopted what observers described as “jankara” method in selecting its national chairman.

However, despite the trajectory, there was never a time the party wanted to fill the vacant position of its national chairman that party’s chieftains would not formally indicate their interests.

In the party’s last organised election during its elective national convention in 2022 to replace the Governor Mai Mala-Buni-led committee, no fewer than 11 contestants indicated serious interests to step into the then vacant position and in the other National Working Committee (NWC) positions ahead of the 2023 general elections.

Prominent figures among the chairmanship aspirants that jostled for the ticket were; former deputy national chairman of the defunct Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), Saliu Mustapha, former governors of Nasarawa, Tanko Al-Makura, Borno, Ali-modu Sheriff, Zamfara, Abdulaziz Yari, Bauchi, Isa Yuguda, Gombe, Danjuma Goje, Benue, and then Minister of Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Affairs, George Akume.

Others were Sunny Moniedafe, who is still bitterly angry with the party leaders, major stakeholders, Mohammed Saidu-Etsu, and the Senator representing Niger East District, Mohammed Sani-Musa.

However, when the chips were down, none of the contestants was unfortunately considered good enough for the position as the then Muhammadu Buhari-led presidency imposed former governor of Nasarawa State, Abdullahi Adamu, who was even then chairman of the party’s National Reconciliation Committee, as the party’s chairman.

Again, in 2023, when Adamu was shoved aside, while the regular contestants who indicated interest were still strategising and lobbying to step into his shoes, the President Bola Tinubu-led administration, as usual, endorsed Umar Ganduje as the chairman of the ruling party.

The decision was totally against the expectations of many pundits and particularly party members from the North Central geopolitical zone who were fiercely protesting that they statutorily and deservedly ought to produce the replacement for the exited Adamu,  since he hails from their zone.

With the recent exit of Dr Ganduje, many of those already indicating interests, secretly and openly, to step into the vacant position, are more or less dominantly still the regular perpetual contestants.

In the background, there have been clandestine networking, alignments, realignments, and tacit drumming of support for certain interested chieftains whose names obviously resonate in the ruling party as those that are already discreetly angling to step into the vacant position.

Aware of the party’s tradition,  aspirants have rather opted to do their networking by instigating their supporters and loyalists to spread their posters or induce certain forum leaders on the auspices of the party to organise sponsored media parleys to announce and publicise their interest to test the waters of their acceptance and equally drum support for them.

That may possibly be the reason for the posters announcing many of the party chieftains’ speculated interest in the position, springing up and spreading like wildfire at several strategic parts in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.

Curiously and for an understandable reason, the majority of those latently indicating interest again are understandably from the North -Central geopolitical zone.

And, so far, the bigwigs jostling for the chairmanship ticket from the zone are the same former state governors, former and incumbent National Assembly members, in addition to one of the only major contenders, Senator Abu Ibrahim, coming from the North West, the same zone with Ganduje.

Though each of the potential aspirants is circumspect and waiting patiently for Mr President’s green light, those said to be desperately rooting for the seat are Umar Tanko Al-Makura; his counterparts, Yahaya Bello; Kogi, Joshua Dariye, Plateau, legislators like Senator Sani Musa, Niger East, Salihu Mustapha, Kwara, and Senator Solomon Ewuga, Nasarawa State.

Also initially speculated to be eyeing the position was the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator George Akume. However, only last week, he not only furiously denounced the speculations, but also disassociated himself completely from nursing any such interest.

In rejecting having such interest in the position, Akume, in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Yomi Odunuga, had described the insinuation as a fabrication meant to distract him from key responsibilities that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu placed on him.

“The attention of the SGF, Senator Akume, has been drawn to a publication indicating that he is one of the top politicians jostling for the position of APC national chairman. To the best of our knowledge, this statement is nothing but a fabrication meant to distract the SGF from the key responsibilities that have been placed on him by President Tinubu.

“For the records, Senator Akume is not jostling with anyone for the post of either the APC national chairman or any other post in the party. His main focus is to ensure that he does not in any way betray the intrinsic trust that President Tinubu reposes in him in ensuring that the Renewed Hope Agenda of the ruling party and the government is achieved within the targeted time frame,” the statement reads in parts.

Akume was, however, not alone in disassociating himself from the speculations of planning to contest for the chairmanship position; former Kogi State Governor, Bello, has equally distanced himself too, though from authorising the spreading of his poster indicating interest for the position.

Bello, in denying the campaign posters circulating in Abuja, suggesting his interest in contesting, described those responsible for it as “mischief makers,” insisting that he did not authorise any campaign or promotional activity concerning the APC leadership position.

In a statement last week, the Director of Yahaya Bello Media Office, Ohiare Michael, insisted that “nothing of such can emanate from Yahaya Bello, especially when there are laid down guidelines for the jostle for the chairmanship of the APC.

“No one has been authorised, either directly or indirectly, to print, much less paste any poster on behalf of former Governor Bello,” he said, warning the public against falling for what he called a “desperate bring-him-down-at-all-costs mission.”

Surprisingly, left for the national leadership of the party, the NWC, the current Acting national chairman, Ali Bukar Dalori, should have been allowed to complete the tenure of the current national officers, ending in the first quarter of next year.

This feeling, according to a NWC member who confided in the Daily Sun, is that Dalori has brought the much-lacked camaraderie, comradeship, and calmness devoid of intimidation and autocratic tendencies they suffered in their dealings with the erstwhile leadership.

“If the final decision to pick who will serve out the remaining months of the tenure of the current national leadership is considered, greater percentage of the NWC members will graciously opt for Dalori to continue. You need to see the friendly and peaceful atmosphere where we held our first NWC meeting post-Ganduje era. It was devoid of intimidation and autocratic tendencies, members passed through under the Ganduje-led chairmanship.

“Without sounding as if we celebrated the exit of Dr. Ganduje, the truth is that there was camaraderie, peace and harmony throughout Dalori’s maiden meeting. Yes, Dalori has some shortcomings, just like the imperfections of every other human being, but he is someone who has garnered so much experience in party administration, having been in the corridors of the leadership of the party from the state to the national levels.

“However, the opinions of the NWC members unfortunately cannot, in any way, have any significant influence in deciding the future of who becomes the national chairman of our party, the way it is structured now.

“It has been designed in such a way that the final decision rests on the tables of the presidency or the hands of the president with little or no inputs from the national officers,” the NWC member told Daily Sun in confidence.

But, regardless of the denials from those speculated to be interested in the vacant position, and the desire of the members of the NWC for the continuation of the acting national chairman, what may be sacrosanct in the calculations of the presidency, is that a new Sheriff will soon be in town to occupy the office unfailingly by next week because as the saying goes, nature abhors vacuum.

Expectedly, the absence of President Tinubu has heightened anxiety about the emergence of the anointed person, quietening campaign activities among aspirants who now focus on secret networking to avoid wasting funds without knowing the presidency’s direction.

What is, however, obviously in the public glare is the resurrection of the usual agitations, especially from the CPC block that merged into the APC, protesting to have a feel of the national chairmanship position since the formation of the ruling party 12 years ago.

Already the CPC members have insisted that whoever the presidency finally anoints to eventually assume the position should never come from the new-Peoples Democratic Party (nPDP) or the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) blocks of the APC, insisting that they have benefitted in the past in the greater part of the existence of the ruling party.

However, despite the agitations and apprehensions, there are indications that the presidency may have settled on the North- Central region to produce the national chairman. This is to serve out the tenure of the current national leadership and, secondly, to pacify the agitated party members from the zone.

The sources claimed that among the arrays of political Irokos pushing to occupy the position in the zone, the presidency may have equally settled for the aspirant from Plateau State, particularly Joshua Dariye, to take charge until March next year when the ruling party will officially organise an elective national convention to produce the substantive national chairman and the NWC that will oversee the preparation and conduct of party primaries for the 2027 general elections.

“Barring a last-minute change in plans, the presidency may have already settled for the North- Central to produce our next national chairman. The decision was to first pacify the agitations from the zone over what they considered the injustice of removing and replacing Abdullahi Adamu with Umar Ganduje, who is not from the zone.

“And secondly, to appoint a calm, cool-headed party chieftain in the modes of Dariye who will maturely settle the internal rumblings in the party and serve out the remaining months till March next year when the tenure of the current national leadership will end.

“However, I must have to say that it will not be a walk in the park because it remains to be seen how the presidency will manage having two officials from the same Plateau State as national chairman and deputy national secretary on the same NWC national leadership,” our source added.

But whoever the nuts fell on to superintend over the ruling party, the humongous responsibility awaiting him would be to deploy a sagacious administrative acumen to manage the impending implosions threatening the peaceful existence of the party across its state chapters.

More importantly, the new party chairman ought to be a person with a proven integrity in financial resources management to be able to transparently handle the funds accruing to the party, which has hitherto been the source of conflict confronting the party, which has equally resulted in clamping down on the various accounts of the ruling for some years now.