Presidential ticket: Imposition ‘ll spell doom for APC in 2023, stakeholders warn Buhari

Stakeholders of the All progressive congress (APC) have called on President  Muhammadu Buhari and the leadership of the party to allow a level playing field for all the presidential aspirants of the party.

The stakeholders under the aiges of APC National Stakeholders warned that anything short of a free and fair presidential primaries could spell doom for the party at the 2023 poll.

Convener of the group, Aliyu Audu at a press conference Wednesday in Abuja, said the best legacy President Muhammadu Buhari can leave for the APC and Nigeria as a whole is the legacy of a deeply entrenched democratic process where Nigerians can freely choose who represents them at whatever level in free, fair, credible and transparent processes. 

Decrying the infightings among party stalwarts in the aftermath of the states, national Assemblies and governorship primaries across the country, the group contended 

The group frowned at speculations that the President was hell bent on imposing his preferred presidential candidate on the party.

The group wondered why President Buhari who emerged flagbearer of the party through a free, fair and credibly contested democratic process in 2015 and also won re-election through the same process in 2019, is being tempted to breach the tenets of democracy.

The group noted: “At this point in the life of the APC, winning the 2023 presidential election is equally as important as who flies the flag of the party in the election, especially if protecting the legacies that the Muhammadu Buhari led APC administration has put in place in the last 7 years is of great concern.

“What guarantees victory for many political is not just who the candidate is, but the process through which they emerge. If the process is flawed so much as to leave members disenchanted, you are already on your way to losing the election. 

 “For the APC to avoid finding itself on this path, it must not make the mistake of forcing anyone on the party in whatever guise. The president is free and has the right to have his choice of candidate.

“But let everyone be made to test their popularity in the field so that representatives of the party in the form of delegates will choose who they deem to be the best, more qualified and popular to win us the 2023 presidential election.

“It imperative to remind the president that he is supposed to be the moral compass for us as members of the party and Nigerians as a whole. 

“As the president and leader of the party, it is a moral responsibility that he set examples for the governors and future elected leaders to emulate and not the other way round.”