Under the auspices of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Stakeholders forum, a group has got together to drum up support for Borno State Governor, Professor Babagana Umara Zulum as running mate to the Party’s Presidential Flagbearer, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the 2023 general elections.
Sunday in Minna, the National Chairman of the group, Mallam Yusuf Abdullahi Sulaiman, told journalists and party supporters from the seven states in the North Central geo-political zone that for the party to win the presidential election next year, a competent and workaholic vice president must be nominated to run under the presidential ticket of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu on the platform of the ruling APC.
Prof. Babagana Umara Zulum, the incumbent governor of Borno State, was selected as the most qualified candidate after a stratified random sampling of opinions was done throughout the Northern regions of the country.
For the ruling party to win the election, he argued, religion should not be a deciding factor; whether the ticket is Muslim-Muslim or Christian-Christian is irrelevant; what matters is “who can deliver and salvage the country from its current quagmire and problem.”
According to him, if religion was a determining factor, Pastor Tunde Bakare, a seasoned politician, would have received more votes during the recent Special Convention/presidential primary election of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the Eagle Square in Abuja, despite the number of Christian delegates. However, Pastor Tunde Bakare received zero votes.
He noted that a strong committee of elders from the ruling APC were working to convince Zulum to serve as Tinubu’s running mate, noting that Zulum had stated that he wants to continue serving his people in Borno State but was made to understand that “Nigeria needed him most and APC needed him more than Borno State if he is a loyal party member and a patriotic citizen.
According to the national chairman, the stakeholders’ forum was touring the 19 Northern states for the campaign/sensitization, commencing with the North-Western and North Central Zones.
Thus, he urged all eligible voters to obtain their Permanent Voter Card (PVC), emphasizing that doing so “is the only way to elect strong leaders and bring about the required change.”
