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Former Nigeria’s President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, has said he has no choice presidential candidate in the 2023 general elections, but that he only has a national agenda.
Obasanjo said this in Minna, the Niger state capital when he visited a former Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar (rtd) at his residence
Obasanjo, rumoured to be supporting the presidential candidate of Labour Party (LP), Mr Peter Obi, was recently sighted in London, where he attended a meeting with Rivers state Governor Nyesom Wike, alongside Obi and some People’s Democratic Party (PDP) governors loyal to Wike.
Responding to questions from journalists after the visit, Obasanjo said: “I don’t have a special candidate, I have a national agenda.”
“I have come to see my brother who was a bit indisposed and when he was abroad I had wanted to visit him, and the day I arrived in London to visit him was the day he left.
“So, I said, well since I could not see him in London, I will come to see him in Nigeria. And so, that is what I have come to do.
“He is special in a way and he was indisposed, so I had to come and see him. If there is anybody again who is special and indisposed that I have to see, I will see him. I am still strong enough.”
Earlier, the duo had a closed door meeting which lasted 30 minutes.
GYB NetworkMeanwhile, the Kogi state chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has vowed to deliver the state to the presidential candidate of the party, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, in the 2023 presidential elections.
State Coordinator of GYB Networks for Asiwaju Alhaji Haddy Ametuo stated this Saturday in Lokoja during the inauguration of zonal, federal constituency and local government coordinators.
He said the task ahead of the coordinators were enormous and charged them to cooperate with the local government chairmen to mobilise votes for the party during the forthcoming general elections.
Ametuo commended the Governor Yahaya Bello for unifying the party members, describing him as the engine room through which the campaign group would continue to function.
He also lauded the commitment of the APC national officer representing the state, Murtala Yakubu, for his pivotal roles in the development of the party in the state.
Kwankwaso in BornoIn a related development, the presidential candidate of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP), Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso, said he was excited by the large crowd that received him in Maiduguri, Borno state.
This, he said, had further gone to reinforce the hope of his party in the 2023 general elections.
Kwankwaso, who spoke to journalists in Maiduguri Sunday, said the crowd who defied the heavy downpour to welcome him, showed how eager the people of Borno wanted to change from the status quo.
“Look at how people came out; I was so excited, I was so happy that the people of Borno are now very ripe for a change.
“If only the people I saw on arrival yesterday will vote for us I can assure you we will win Borno,” Kwankwaso said.
The presidential candidate said that people across Nigeria were buying into NNPP which he adopted a few months ago, adding that before the election next year, particularly when campaigns would start, the party would shock Nigerians with its popularity.
“The more you know Kwankwaso the more you like him. The more you know Kwankwasiyya the more the love.
“We will take that goodwill to the south as we have offices from ward to state levels all over Nigeria and we are fielding candidates for all positions across Nigeria,” Kwankwaso said.
He commended President Muhammadu Buhari for signing the Electoral Act and called for a commitment to a free and fair election.
While condemning those speculating that he would step down for some candidates, Kwankwaso described such speculations as mischievous and needed to be stopped for real contenders to face issue-based campaigns.
“Let us start the campaigns; we will separate between the chaff and grains.
“Some people are saying that there may be no winner in the first round of voting but from our camp, we believed that we are going to win in the first ballot by the grace of God,” said the former lawmaker and ex-Kano state governor.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that while in Maiduguri, the former governor commissioned the state party secretariat and held meetings with the party stakeholders and various interest groups. (NAN) | |
