It appears the ball is in the court of presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Ahmed Tinubu, in respect of the decision to choose his running mate for the 2023 presidential election.
But in making the choice, he has factor in the position of the governing party, which is to take into considerations all the indices that would promote fairness and unity of the country in his choice of a running mate.
This is more so when stakeholders of the party have blatantly rejected the idea of a Muslim/Muslim ticket, insisting that in the spirit of fairness, the party must pick a Christian from the North as Tinubu’s running mate.
Political parties in the country have less than 72 hours to submit names of the presidential candidate and their running mates to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Imo State governor, Hope Uzodimma, gave the hint of the decision of a running mate lying with Tinubu while briefing State House correspondents after meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari over his planned state visit to commission some projects executed by his administration.
On insinuations that the APC was planning to fly a Muslim/Muslim ticket, he said there is no where in the constitution that says religion is a factor or characteristics of who becomes the president or who becomes the running mate.
He said, “But we are looking for a united Nigeria where governance will be the issue, where a president would be adjudged by his capacity to deliver democratic dividends, develop Nigeria to look like other parts of the Western world where democracy is working.
“The decision also to choose a running mate does not reside with any of us the governors. It is the presidential candidate that will look at the local characteristics and every factors, political and apolitical, that would make him win his election and take the decision. So it’s not a decision that we will sit here and take for the candidate.”
“The next thing as party leaders now and opinion leaders is for us to rise up, mobilize and get members of our party to commit to a successful election by 2023 so that our president who is leaving will also be handing over to our own president of APC. That is our preoccupation now; how to win the election.”
He further explained that the candidate would have to consider some ideas and issues like how to create a spread. Spread is very important to be able to attract votes.
Meanwhile, in the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike, has been picked as running mate to the party’s presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, for the 2023 election.
Wike emerged the preferred choice yesterday after a committee voted in his favour at the PDP national secretariat in Abuja.
The committee comprised members of various organs of the party, including governors, lawmakers, and Board of Trustees (BoT) members and former governors.
The committee led by PDP deputy national chairman (North), Umar Damagum, was charged with the responsibility of picking Atiku’s running mate.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had fixed next Friday, June 17, 2022, as the deadline for political parties to submit the names of their Presidential candidates and running mates.
Wike had contested the position with his Delta and Akwa Ibom State counterparts, Ifeanyi Okowa and Udom Emmanuel, respectively.
However, a source at the meeting, who is a member of the committee disclosed that members of the committee and other party stakeholders settled for Wike after a vote was conducted.
The source added that majority of the committee members voted for Wike, even though Atiku still reserves the right to pick him or not.
It was gathered that the committee will meet with Wike tomorrow today in Abuja.
Members of the committee who attended the meeting include former president of the Senate President, David Mark; House minority leader, Hon. Ndudi Elumelu; Benue State governor, Samuel Ortom; Sokoto State governor, Aminu Tambuwal; and Bauchi State governor, Bala Mohammed.
Others include former governor of Niger State, Babangida Aliyu; former governor of Jigawa State, Sule Lamido; former Cross Rivers State governor, Liyel Imoke; former governor of Ondo State, Olusegun Mimiko; Senator Philip Aduda; PDP national secretary, Sam Anyanwu, and national organising secretary, Hon Umar Bature.