The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Abdullahi Adamu on Friday led members of the National Working Committee (NWC) to the campaign office of the party’s presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, at the Central Business District in Abuja.
It is believed that the meeting centred around rapprochement with political groups outside the party, including the team led by Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike; resolution of internal wrangling among which is the fallouts of the party’s NWC election, 2023 primaries across all levels and dispute over the Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket.
The meeting had in attendance Tinubu’s running mate, Senator Kashim Shettima; some key members of the party’s Presidential Campaign Council; National Vice Chairman for South-West, Isaac Kekemeke; National Youth Leader, Dayo Israel; Deputy National Chairman for North, Senator Abubakar Kyari, among other NWC members.
The NWC delegation had paid a congratulatory visit to Tinubu barely 48 hours after he won the APC presidential primary on 7 June.
Tinubu, who had been courting Wike through proxies over his 2023 presidential ambition, met his target in London last Monday.
Two days after, the presidential candidate of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar also met with Wike in London in what many believed was a move to neutralise whatever plan Tinubu was making to lure Wike to his camp.
Earlier on same day, former President Olusegun Obasanjo had also held a closed-door meeting with the governor in a move speculated to be driven at building broad support for the aspiration of the Labour Party’s presidential candidate, Mr Peter Obi.
The Muslim-Muslim ticket has led to friction within the APC with former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir David Lawal; and former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Yakubu Dogara leading a vigorous campaign against the party’s candidate.
Their agitation was a fallout of the negotiation led by the Northern governors and Tinubu, which culminated in the latter’s choice of Shettima as a vice presidential candidate.
APC also has a crisis in Ogun State where former governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun continued his opposition against Governor Dapo Abiodun in his second term bid. Amosun has vowed continue his campaign against Abiodun, the APC governorship candidate in the 2023 election.
Osun State is another concern for the APC NWC with Interior Minister, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola accused of anti-party activities having worked against the party in the 16 July governorship poll, which the incumbent, Governor Gboyega Oyetola lost to PDP’s Senator Ademola Adeleke.
