“The Aso Rock group reached out to GEJ to first win his state as a prelude to the final onslaught. Pronto! The APC candidate, David Lyon won only for him to lost vide Supreme Court a day to the swearing-in. This jolted the group, but undaunted. They have activated the phase two which is to polarized the main opposition-the PDP. The plan is afoot already. Apart from Ebonyi Governor who defected recently, Prof. Ben Ayade of Cross River, Godwin Obaseki of Edo and Nyesome Wike of Rivers may soon join the APC. Those who thought Yahaya Bello, Kogi Governor was joking when he mentioned it on a national television that Wike may be the last to join APC did not understand what’s on ground. Wike owns his governorship to the benevolence of Mrs Patience Jonathan who’s from Okrika in Rivers state and Wike will never oppose anything GEJ. The whole idea is to neutralize Tinubu and if possible, provoked him to leave the APC with his group which has been depleted already”
GEJ & President Buhari
The All Progressives Congress (APC) may have commenced preparations for the 2023 presidential election as some of its governors held a private meeting with ex-President Goodluck Jonathan in Abuja on Friday evening.
GEJ
Mai Mala Buni, governor of Yobe state and acting national chairman of the APC, led the governors to Jonathan’s residence in Abuja.
David Umahi, governor of Ebonyi who recently defected to the APC from the PDP; Atiku Bagudu, governor of Kebbi and chairman of the Progressives Governors’ Forum; and Abubakar Badaru, governor of Jigawa, were at the meeting.
Also in the team was Kashim Ibrahim-Imam, former presidential liaison officer to the national assembly.
This may be precursor to the clamour for GEJ for 2023 presidential election being canvased by a powerful group within the APC to neutralize the two contending forces: Tinubu and Fayemi’s group.
Jonathan was elected president in 2011 and lost to Buhari in 2015, but he is still qualified to run having only spent one term of four years in office.
Coincidentally, Jonathan hosted the duo of Badaru and Bagudu at his Otuoke residence in Bayelsa a year ago.
The governors had visited Jonathan to thank him for his support in the victory of David Lyon, the APC candidate in the 2019 governorship election in Bayelsa.
Lyon was eventually sacked by the supreme court while Douye Diri of the PDP was declared winner of the election.
On Friday, APC leaders, including Ken Nnamani, a former senate president, visited Jonathan in commemoration of his 63rd birthday.
They held a private meeting with the ex-president during the visit which held after the Northern Governors’ Forum congratulated Jonathan on his birthday.
The Northern Governors Forum had sent warm felicitations to Jonathan on his birthday.
In a statement, Simon Lalong, chairman of the forum and governor of Plateau, said the former president has continued to serve the country with zeal and commitment.
He described Jonathan as a true democrat whose “passion for the growth of democracy is reflected not only in his records while in office but also of his current engagements where he has travelled round the world to monitor elections and also engage with stakeholders”.
Lalong also saluted the former president’s patriotism and dedication to the unity, peace and development of Nigeria as well as offering counsel on various issues.
He asked him to remain focused on his life of service that has brought honour and goodwill to Nigeria.
Those in the know say the plan was hatched last year during the gubernatorial election in Bayelsa.
“The Aso Rock group reached out to GEJ to first win his state as a prelude to the final onslaught. Pronto! The APC candidate, David Lyon won only for him to lost vide Supreme Court a day to the swearing-in. This jolted the group, but undaunted. They have activated the phase two which is to polarized the main opposition-the PDP. The plan is afoot already. Apart from Ebonyi Governor who defected recently, Prof. Ben Ayade of Cross River, Godwin Obaseki of Edo and Nyesome Wike of Rivers may soon join the APC. Those who thought Yahaya Bello, Kogi Governor was joking when he mentioned it on a national television that Wike may be the last to join APC did not understand what’s on ground. Wike owns his governorship to the benevolence of Mrs Patience Jonathan who’s from Okrika in Rivers state and Wike will never oppose anything GEJ. The whole idea is to neutralize Tinubu and if possible, provoked him to leave the APC with his group which has been depleted already.” Said the source.
According to insider, the GEJ option seems to be the best in the present circumstances, because it would likely afford the APC to continue beyond 2023 after the ‘branding’.
Secondly, GEJ is seen as a moderate who is not vindictive and may not seek revenge if he succeeds President Muhammadu Buhari.
He’s also going to be a more or less an interim President for four years only and the battle of who succeeds him in from the north will start almost immediately he’s sworn-in.
It’s not clear if his eligibility will be contested in court because the constitution says you can only serve a two terms of four years apiece, making a total of eight years. GEJ would have served for 10 years if his promoters succeeded to install him in 2023 to serve for another four years, having spent six years already.
With these developments, the chairman of Nigeria governors forum and governor of Ekiti state, Dr. Kayode Fayemi and Governor of Kaduna state, Nasir el-Rufai may have to return to the drawing board to fine tune their strategy or activate the plan B.
The National Leader of the APC, Mr. Bola Tinubu who is said to have made an elaborate preparation to contest in 2023 may also have to tinker with his plans. The removal of Adams Oshiohmole as the national chairman of the APC seems to have taken the steam off his political machinery. The fall out of the EndSARS protests across the country may also have affected his political ambition. He’s been vilified as the sponsor, while some also accused him of inviting the Army to shoot at the peaceful protesters at Lekki Tollgate, a fact he attested to in his statement.
This may also be the reason behind the postponement of the APC convention initially slated for December 2020 to allow for more consultations and those who may want to defect before the convention in order to have an inclusive NWC. The secretary of the APC caretaker committee, Senator Akpan Udoedehe reveals recently that the committee is trying to woo more people to join the Party before the convention.
It promises to be a battle royale according to an insider. “Tinubu is a dogged fighter and also Fayemi’s group will not surrender the president ticket with a fight.”
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