Ondo State Governor and Chairman of the Nigerian Southern Governors’ Forum, Rotimi Akeredolu, has condemned the decision of the All Progressives Congress, APC, chairman, Abdullahi Adamu, to name the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, as the party’s preferred candidate for the 2023 presidential election.
This was contained in a statement he signed personally on Monday.
Akeredolu said that Adamu, with his statement, had embarked on “a frolic” that was “dangerous”.
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He said the APC governors in the Northern and Southern regions had agreed that the presidential candidacy of the party should shift to the South for the 2023 elections.
“My attention has just been drawn to the expensive joke purportedly enacted by the National Chairman of APC, Senator Abdullahi Adamu.
“The speculation is rife that the Chairman took a flight of fancy and decided to make a pronouncement beyond his competence. He has, allegedly, made public his preferred choice as the candidate of the APC for the Office of the President in the next general elections.
“This alleged pronouncement runs contrary to the position of majority of Northern Governors in APC and their counterparts in the South. Our agreement is unanimous on this issue.
“The office of the President should be contested for by qualified persons from the Southern part of the country if the move to get a consensus candidate fails.
“There has been no shift from this settled issue.
“Let it be known that the Chairman or anyone who holds a contrary opinion does so at a personal level.
“He is at best embarking on a frolic which reasonable people will consider dangerous.
“We are grieving but have not forgotten that Power MUST shift to the south. On this we stand,” the statement read.