Former Military Head of State, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday said that he was ready to step down if a better and more formidable candidate emerged under the platform of the All Progressive Congress, APC ahead of the 2015 presidential election.
Buhari stated this shortly after the Sam Nda Isaiah Media Annual Lecture Series, held yesterday in Minna, the Niger State capital.
He stressed that the APC was more concerned with the entrenchment of internal democracy, adding that whoever emerged would bring the desired change.
He said: “I will be
ready to step down, if there is a formidable and better candidate. APC is not about me but all about its survival and ensuring internal democracy is entrenched. Therefore, whoever emerges as a better candidate for the party that is the person I will support. I will step down.”
The former Head of State urged the press to be courageous enough to advise the nation’s leaders on focus, saying failure to do so would spell doom for the country.
Buhari said: “I want you to know that the moment there is nobody in the nation that will make our leaders to create a viable environment for the people, then the country is heading for trouble.”
Also, former governor of Kano State, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau, in an interview said that the decision to form the APC was not to dislodge the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, but to effect a change in the democratic system.
“We are not out to dislodge the PDP, but to institute change in every facet of life such as attitudinal change in governance and change in the way things are done in this country.”
On multiplicity of aspirants wanting to contest on the party’s platform, Shekarau stated that the right candidate would emerge at the party’s convention.
He added that after the convention, the APC would approach the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, for formal registration as a political party.
“After the registration, the new party would then ensure that internal democracy is entrenched within for aspiring contenders of the party to contest for position from councillorship to the presidency in the next general election.”
Meanwhile, northern senators appear to be warming up to scuttle the adoption of the proposed single tenure for elected president and governors.
Even though the Senate Committee on the Review of the Constitution has recommended non-renewable single six year tenure for the office of President, Vice-President, governors and their deputies and is set to make it part of the changes in the new constitution, a number of northern senators are said to be opposed to the idea.
As part of its recommendations, the Senate committee disqualified President Jonathan and all the incumbent governors from benefitting from the new arrangement if the recommendation eventually becomes law.
Chairman of the Senate Committee on Information, Media and Public Affairs, who is also a member of the Senate Committee on Constitution Review had confirmed to correspondents on Tuesday during their monthly press briefing that the issue of single tenure came up for consideration during their retreat in Lagos last weekend.
Abaribe, who failed to disclose the position of the committee on the matter, merely said, “At our retreat in Lagos, it was one of the issues that were brought before us and we considered it.”
One of the very ranking senators from the North, who spoke to National Mirror on the matter yesterday stated that after consulting with some of their leaders, it became clear that the proposed single tenure does not enjoy general acceptance from the North after all.
The lawmaker said the only aspect of the proposal that the northern leaders are at home with is the idea of disqualifying Jonathan from re-contesting. He said insofar as the North believes that they are the ones to produce the next president, they are not comfortable with the idea of occupying the office for only one tenure.
“We have been speaking with our leaders and they are of the opinion that such a proposal is not in the best interest of the North. Right now the only language our people understand is that they must produce the next president and power must return to the North and nobody is going to take it from them,” the lawmaker said.
Continuing he said, “The leaders have charged us to push for northern presidency in 2015 and ensure that Jonathan is not allowed to re-contest.”
The lawmaker disclosed that now that the issue has taken over the national discourse, it will be further examined by the northern senators at their meeting, which will take place next week.
He said whatever position that the Senate Review Committee has taken on the matter is not yet final. He said if the need arises, the issue will be looked into again when the committee brings its report to the Senate and when the recommendations are taken round the states.
“The issue is not yet foreclosed. Don’t forget that the committee will still present its report to the Senate in plenary where the matter will be further re-examined, after that, there will be a conference committee of both chambers before the recommendations will be taken round the 36 states House of Assemblies for their own inputs,” the senator said.
The report of the People’s Public Sessions conducted on the constitution by the House of Representatives indicated that the majority of Nigerians are opposed to the issue of a single tenure for elected executive officers.
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