APC governors and political leaders from the northern States have declared that after eight years in office of President Muhammadu Buhari, the presidential candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) for the 2023 elections should come from the southern states of the country.
The position of the Governors and leaders from the North was contained in an issued press statement, yesterday.
The statement came as a meeting President Muhammadu Buhari summoned with State Governors elected on the platform of the APC began at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
According to the statement, this led Jigawa State Governor, Abubakar Badaru, to withdraw from the presidential race.
The statement further stated that “it is a question of honour for the APC; an obligation that is not in any way affected by the decisions taken by another political party. We affirm that upholding this principle is in the interest of building a stronger, more united and more progressive country.
“We, therefore, wish to strongly recommend to President Buhari that the search for a successor as the APC’s presidential candidate be limited to our compatriots from the southern States.
“We appeal to all aspirants from the northern States to withdraw in the national interest and allow only the aspirants from the south to proceed to the primaries.
The statement was signed by eleven State governors, which include Bello Masari, Katsina; Nasir Ahmed el-Rufa’i, Kaduna; Atiku Bagudu, Kebbi; Simon Lalong, Plateau; Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, Kano; Bello Matawalle, Zamfara; Inuwa Yahaya, Gombe; Babagana Zulum, Borno; Sani Bello, Niger and Abdullahi Sule, Nasarawa.
