BY AMOS DUNIA. ABUJA – As political permutations and manoeuvrings ahead of the 2027 elections begin to pick up, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is believed not to be leaving anything to chance for his second term re-election bid in office.
Part of the moves on the table of President Tinubu is to quickly assuage the frayed nerves of Congress Progressives Change (CPC) members within the All Progressives Congress (APC) that are feeling left out from the scheme of things in the administration.
Also, it is gathered that the moves by members of the CPC comprising former governors, members of the National Assembly and some political heavy weights mainly from the Northern States, are to perfect defection plans to the Social Democratic Party (SDP) en masse ahead of the Party primary holding next year.
Specifically, the CPC stakeholders in APC, who have remain silent since 2023, are a significant component of the ruling Party as they still control and exert influence in their respective states and domains.
Some of these notable figures include the former Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN, whose influence in Kebbi, Sokoto and Kebbi is considered significant, former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami, former Aviation Minister, Hadi Sirika, former Minister of State for Education Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba and some members in both chambers of the National Assembly.
But in a decisive move to calm tension and assuage their feelings, insiders hinted that President Tinubu is planning to extend an olive branch to the CPC group by offering the position of APC National Chairman to the former Governor of Nasarawa State, Senator Tanko Al-Makura, who was initially tipped in 2023 to replace the former National Chairman of the Party, Senator Abdullahi Adamu that was forced to resign his position.
It was learnt the move is also aimed at placating the North Central members of the party that are feeling seriously marginalised from the scheme of things within the Party and the administration and also against the backdrop of the fact that the position of the APC National Chairman was abi initio zoned to the North Central geo-political zone but for which President Tinubu unilaterally ceded to the North West zone which has the position of Speaker of the House of Representatives from Kaduna State and the Deputy President of the Senate from the same Kano State where Dr Umar Ganduje, present National Chairman hails from.
Checks by Forefront News indicated that in spite of the visits by Progressives Governors led by Governor Hope Uzodinma of Imo State to former President Muhammadu Buhari to plead with him to intervene and stop his loyalists from leaving the APC, the political atmosphere remained unclear as to the next move of the CPC members that are of the view that if President Tinubu can be this daring in approach and implementation of most of his actions in his first term in office by abandoning those that assisted him to get into office in 2023, it is obvious that more difficult times awaits them in the future if they are to continue in the APC before and after 2027.
However, it was gathered that one of the obstacles for now is how to convince former Governor Al-Makura to accept the offer since President Tinubu rejected his nomination in 2023 in spite of the pressure from stakeholders from the North central bloc within the Party that wanted their zoned position to remain within their geopolitical zone and addition to the consideration of the votes that the President garnered from the six states that made up the zone.
Insiders further hinted that despite the recent pressure mounted on him, former President Buhari is not very keen in dissuading his loyalists and political allies from taking their independent decisions if they so desire, thus, the second leg of the visit by the members of the National Working Committee (NWC) of the APC led by the National Chairman of the Party, Ganduje to former President Buhari did not yield any positive result as the former President refused to be committed or give any assurance.
A member of the CPC within the APC who does not want his name in print, told Forefront News that the situation is really dicey and precarious on both sides of the divide, adding that even Al-Makura is not too comfortable with the position of National Chairman of the APC which has become an appendage of Aso Rock Villa being controlled mainly by one of the appointees of the President.
According to the CPC member; “Of what value is the present position of the National chairman of the APC in the current dispensation when a particular Minister who is not a full fledge member of the Party and the Senate President are the ones determining what happens in the Party?
“I can tell you that President Tinubu is a total President and not one that defy to Party’s decisions. He is the APC and the APC is him.
“We are aware that Senator Al-Makura is under pressure to accept the offer and also convince we his associates in the CPC through former President Buhari not to defect from the APC in droves which will seriously affect the Party.
I can assure you that if that happens, it would be more devastating than what happened in the PDP in 2014 when key members of the Party left to join the APC,” the CPC chieftain explained.
Information pieced together also indicated that most members of the CPC, and remanent of the nPDP being led by former governor of Rivers State, Hon Rotimi Amaechi and APGA have expressed serious reservations with regards to the style of governance by President Tinubu which formed the nucleus of the moves for the mass defection from the APC.
It was also gathered that the internal strife within the APC which was initially being managed using official muscling to keep members in check has now given way to open agitation and condemnation of some of the policies of the administration and the running of the Party which has badly broken the needed unity of purpose ahead of the next electoral cycle.
If the speculated mass defections materialize, it is most likely going to pose a serious and devastating crisis for the APC’s victory in 2027 as the CPC bloc which is quite significant in the APC could cause serious disruption in its national appeal, thus may create an uneven power equation that the upcoming coalition of opposition parties would take advantage and lash on.
For now, the political reading of the situation is still blurry and difficult to situate in proper context with regards to the direction of the 2027 political pendulum. All that is needed for now is a careful study of the various moves just as less combative punches and venomous attacks by appointed aides of the President against every and any statement must be properly guided.
