Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai says Vice President Yemi Osinbajo is loved and respected by the governors of Nigeria’s 36 states, ahead of a crucial APC primary election slated for next weekend in the nation’s capital city of Abuja.
Osinbajo is among a raft of frontline presidential aspirants on the platform of the governing All Progressives Congress (APC), as Nigeria prepares for the 2023 general election.
“Vice President Osinbajo has the respect of all the governors of Nigeria, across party lines, because of the way and manner he steers the affairs of the National Economic Council (NEC),” Governor El-Rufai said during Osinbajo’s visit to Kaduna in continuation of his consultations with APC stakeholders and delegates across the country.
Powerful state governors in Nigeria often have a say in deciding candidates for various elective offices.
El-Rufai added that he’s worked closely with Osinbajo in the past and can attest to his intellect and brilliance.
“I have worked very closely with the vice president in the last seven years. Before then, we worked as senior officials of the party to craft the party’s strategy, as well as manifesto. We jointly wrote the manifesto of the party together as members of the strategy committee of the party.
“He is a man of intellect, brilliance; a unifier, a detribalized Nigerian; who has shown us leadership as chairman of the National Economic Council.
“It was under Vice President Osinbajo’s leadership that our Paris Cub refund, that was deducted in 2005, was finally paid to all the states, and we are all beneficiaries.
“It was under his leadership that recommendations were made to bail out 27 states, that, in 2015 were unable to pay salaries. I can go on and on to list the qualifications and virtues of Vice President Yemi Osinbajo,” El-Rufai enthused.
The race for the APC presidential ticket is a hotly contested and keenly followed one. More than a dozen APC chieftains have purchased the governing party’s presidential forms for a whopping N100 million, as the race for President Buhari’s successor reaches fever pitch.