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By Myke Agunwa
As political endorsement and realignment ahead of the 2027 general election intensify, the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has declared the party will give opportunity to anyone who wishes to contest its presidential primary election against President Bola Tinubu to do so.
The party went further to state that despite the massive endorsement and support of all stakeholders in favour of President Tinubu, it will resist the temptation of printing only one presidential nomination form so that other aspirants will also have the opportunity to contest.
Recall that in 2014, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) printed only one nomination form for President Goodluck Jonathan, thereby shutting out other prominent presidential aspirants, a step that was drastically resisted by Dr. Abdul Jelil Tafawa Balewa son of former Prime Minister, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa made unsuccessful attempts to purchase the expression of interest and nomination forms to challenge the decision of the party.
Addressing a press conference on Wednesday in Abuja, the APC’s National Organising Secretary, Alhaji Suleiman Argungu, while celebrating the party’s victories at the recent By-elections, assured Nigerians that both the President and the APC will remain dedicated to their welfare, security, and prosperity of citizens.
According to Argungu, the remarkable achievement is a reaffirmation of the confidence Nigerians continue to repose in the APC.
He said: “These victories are not just statistics; they are a reaffirmation of the trust Nigerians continue to place in the APC.
“They demonstrate the strength, resilience, and growing acceptance of our party nationwide.
“They reflect the belief of the Nigerian people in our capacity to deliver purposeful leadership and good governance.”
Note that APC won 13 out of the 16 contested seats at the just concluded August 16th Bye-election that took place in 12 states.
When asked whether the party will allow other presidential contestants to pick up nomination forms despite the various endorsements President Tinubu had gotten, the National Organising Secretary answered in the affirmative.
He said: “The aspiration of the people would be the wish of the party. As leaders of the party today, the NWC, have endorsed President Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the next presidential candidate of the party. By extension, other organs have done similar things. Governments in most of the states, zones in most of the six political zones have also adopted the same.
“But that does not mean that the door is closed. That does not mean that when time comes, like we did always, we’ll make our timetable known so that for anybody who wants to aspire to be the next President of this country, under the platform of All Progressives Congress, we’ll not deny him that opportunity to come and purchase form. We’ll allow him to come and pay. So that he can exercise his franchise as a member of the APC.
“We have never said it for any time, for any day that we have closed the door. But we are only telling people that we appreciate what Mr. President is doing to the good people of this country.”
He also revealed plans to schedule an interactive session with all elected Senators, Members of the House of Representatives, and State House of Assembly members soonest in Abuja.