APC Convention: Chairmanship Aspirants Gear Up For Top Seat. By Saawua Terzungwe

Akume and Saliu Mustapha The wave of uncertainty over the conduct of the All Progressives Congress (APC) national convention has ceased sequel to the scheduling of the party’s national convention for February next year. Following the development, aspirants for the office of the party’s national chairman have renewed their scheming and lobbying to win the hearts of top shots of the party ahead of the exercise. Chairman of the APC Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee and Yobe State Governor, Mai Mala Buni, had led some APC governors to a meeting with President Buhari on Monday at the State House in Abuja, where they fixed February 2022, for the convention where a new leadership would emerge for the ruling party. Pundits say age, experience, character, ability to resolve the life-threatening crisis in the party among others would come to play in the choice of the next national chairman. This is especially as the APC is poised to retain power in 2023. Some of the old horses in the race are mostly former governors. They are; former governors of Nasarawa State, Tanko Al-Makura, Sen Ali Modu Sheriff (Borno), Danjuma Goje (Gombe), Sen George Akume (Benue), Abdulaziz Yari (Zamfara) and Kashim Shettima (Borno). A chieftain of the party from Adamawa state, Sunny Moniedafe who is equally in the race is in his 60s. Among the young contestants are; Saliu Mustapha, Mohammed Saidu Etsu and Muhammed Bello. **The older aspirants** *Tanko Al-Makura* Al-Makura is 69 years old. He is a serving Senator and former governor of Nasarawa State. He is seen as the political bulldozer the APC needs now. When denied the PDP ticket in a controversial manner in 2011, Al-Makura picked the ticket of the newly formed CPC and routed PDP and its federal might, defeating then-incumbent Governor, Aliyu Doma in the PDP endemic state. During APC’s formation, he was the only CPC governor, the legacy party that President Buhari brought to the negotiation party. Many see this as a plus for him, but he was a guest of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over allegations of corruption, a development that may count against him. *Danjuma Goje* Aged 69, Senator Goje is a former governor of Gombe State and senator representing Gombe Central since 2011. As a key player in the formation of the party, Goje enjoys the support of his colleagues in the parliament and beyond. But analysts say his chances of winning the party’s chairmanship may be affected by his feud with Governor Inuwa Yahaya of his state. Goje and Yahaya are at daggers drawn over the control of the party structure in the state ahead of the 2023 polls. *Abdulaziz Yari* Abdulaziz Yari is enmeshed in a long-running feud with party members in his state, most prominently, Senator Kabiru Marafa. Analysts say his inability to manage the crisis under his watch cost the party the control of the state in 2019. The 53-year-old politician has unresolved issues with the anti-graft agency; the EFCC, over corruption allegations. *Ali Modu-Sherrif* Modu Sherrif is in his late 60s. He is Borno State’s first governor to serve two consecutive terms (2003-2011). In 2003, he ran on the platform of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) and won. He was re-elected in 2007 and sworn in on 29 May, the same year. Sheriff later played a key role in the formation of the APC. He also served as a senator representing Borno Central for three terms. He later defected to the PDP where he became national chairman of the party. But pundits say his alleged poor handling of the PDP, which led to a protracted legal battle with a former Governor of Kaduna State, Senator Ahmed Makarfi, and his eventual ouster following a Supreme Court judgement that declared the Makarfi-led faction as the authentic leadership of the party, as well as his history of defection, maybe his stumbling block. The younger contenders *Saliu Mustapha* Mustapha, 49, was among those who followed President Muhammadu Buhari when they formed the CPC and led millions of its followers to APC. In his sojourn in the political terrain, he held various positions getting to the position of the deputy national chairman of the defunct CPC. Mustapha enjoys the massive support of his state Governor, Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, for being a bridge-builder at the local chapter of the party in Kwara. He also enjoys the support of young idealists within and outside the party, and many analysts believe it would count for him. With age on his side, if he becomes the chairman of the APC, he is bound to use that as an advantage to sway the youths on his side and that of APC for the 2023 general elections. *Mohammed Saidu Etsu* He is from Niger State. At age 36, he is the youngest of all the aspirants, and he is believed to have the support of the state governor, under whom he is presently serving as a Senior Special Adviser on Rural Electrification. *Muhammed Bello* Muhammad Bello Mustapha is a Constitutional Lawyer and former governorship candidate from Taraba State. He was the pioneer National Youth Leader of The Buhari Organisation (TBO) and the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) governorship candidate in Taraba State in the 2011 general election. In 2018, he contested for the office of APC National Secretary but later stepped down for the then consensus candidate from the zone, Mai Mala Buni, who incidentally is the current chairman of the APC Caretaker Committee.