A political group affiliated with the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has asserted that the recent call for the resignation of the party’s national chairman, Abdullahi Ganduje, was intended to stop President Bola Ahmed Tinubu from securing a second term in office.
The APC supporters who gathered at the party’s Secretariat in Abuja on Monday said those behind the protest against Ganduje were only interested in unseating Tinubu to come 2027.
According to them, the individuals are not APC members but some politicians planning to disrupt the ruling party.
Led by former Commissioner of Lands and Urban Development, Prof Salihu Alizaga from Nasarawa State, the supporters claimed that external forces were responsible for the recent suspension of the party’s National Chairman.
The supporters were warmly received by the national chairman of the party.
During his address at the party secretariat, Alizaga, who is also the Co-Convener of Concerned APC Members and Support Groups, stated that those seeking to remove Ganduje have ulterior motives ahead of 2027 general election.
He said: “We are here to tell the whole world that APC is one united family, devoid of rancour as being erroneously portrayed and speculated by few individuals in Kano State.
“Gentlemen of the press, in the last few weeks, the media has been awash with the news of purported suspension, counter-suspension and re-resuspension of the national chairman of our party by some individuals who are clearly non-members of the APC, capitalising, on the fickle agitations of a few disgruntled members of the APC who claimed to be from the North Central Zone.
“It could be recalled that the concerned North Central Elders/Stakeholders Forum, led by a former Senate President, Senator Ameh Ebute, Senator Jack Tilley Gyado, Prof Nentawe Yiltwada, amongst others, had recently passed a vote of confidence on the national chairman and pledged their loyalty and commitment to the party’s leadership.
“Surprisingly, when we hear of North Central Zone agitation against our National Chairman, it is mostly being championed by someone from the North East and a pocket of a few people from the North Central Zone.
“We are confident that those who want the National Chairman removed are those who are interested in unseating President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in 2027. We can not sacrifice competence on the altar of mediocrity.”
The APC supporters voted in confidence in President Tinubu and Ganduje “for their jobs well done. Our support for the two of you is one hundred per cent.”
Reacting, Ganduje commended the supporters for their solidarity. He accused the Kano State Governor, Abba Yusuf, of sponsoring his purported suspension.
He said the New Nigeria Peoples Party was afraid of the APC because the party had started consolidating ahead of the 2027 election.