The Bauchi State governor, Bala Mohammed and former Senate President Bukola Saraki have been chosen by northern elders in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as the candidates for the 2023 presidency.
The head of the committee which screened the aspirants from the region, Professor Ango Abdullahi, noted that the process that produce Mohammed and Saraki was rigorous, Daily Trust reports.Abdullahi told journalists in Minna, Niger state capital, on Friday, April 22, that former military head of state, General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, received and approved a report submitted to him by the committee on the elders’ choice.In his advice to the Bauchi governor and the former Senate President, Abdullahi noted that they should both work together and decide on which of them will represent the north in the PDP .
A report by Punch quoted Mohammed as saying that he and Saraki will meet and conclude on who will emerge between them.
The governor, according to the publication, said: “We have reached an agreement to seek consensus so that we can close rank and build unity for the North and Nigeria.
“We are happy that after due process and due consultation, involving the PDP Northern Elders Forum, I and Saraki have been chosen as the northern consensus candidates. We will go ahead and consult more among ourselves and bring out one candidate.”
Former Senate President Bukola Saraki had earlier said all the PDP presidential hopefuls from the North are ready for a consensus candidate during the party’s primaries.The Kwara state former governor disclosed when he and Gov. Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto state paid a consultative visit to Gov. Bala Mohammed of Bauchi state.Saraki said they found it necessary as stakeholders of the party to meet, brainstorm and see how things could best work out among them.
He said: “In doing so, we met and discussed that for 2023 ahead of us, the unity and stability of the country and the growth of the country is more important than individual ambitions.
“At the end of the day, it is only one person that will lead this country in 2023; and we also resolved that we are going to work closely to ensure that we come out with a way that consensus arrangement would come among the three of us on how to go forward into leading this country.”
Going further, he explained that the three of them would also meet with former vice president, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, to brief him about the discussions they had during the meeting in Bauchi. Meanwhile, the national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dr. Iyorchia Ayu has disclosed that it is possible that the party might choose a presidential candidate through consensus.
Ayu made this disclosure through a statement on Sunday, during an interdenominational thanksgiving service organised in his honour by the Benue state chapter of the PDP .
He said:“If the PDP could come together to agree on a particular individual for chairman, it means it was capable too of coming together to produce one single candidate to challenge the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the presidential election.”
The PDP national chairman noted that should the party fail in adopting the consensus option for its presidential candidate, all aspirants for the PDP ticket would be treated fairly.
Ayu said: “Every aspirant that will come forward for the presidential election will be treated fairly, with equity and with fairness. There will be a level-playing field for everybody
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