The All Progressives Congress has come out with its strongest position yet on the controversy generated by the clamour by some party members for an automatic ticket for President Muhammadu Buhari in 2019. In separate media interviews in Abuja, on Thursday, the APC National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, and the Chairman of the Progressives Governors’ Forum, Owelle Rochas Okorocha, said neither the President nor any member of the party would be given an automatic ticket.
Abdullahi, who was responding to a question on whether President Muhammadu Buhari would be given an automatic ticket to contest the next elections, said the party’s constitution did not have provisions for such. He noted that as a law-abiding party, the APC would abide by its own rules as enshrined in its constitution when dealing with the issue of nominations. The party spokesman further argued that Buhari had not indicated interest in seeking re-election, stressing that the talks about his second tenure was, at best, “presumptuous.”
“What I can assure you is that the APC will abide by the APC Constitution on such matters and our constitution does not provide for automatic ticket, our constitution does not provide for the right for first refusal. So, our party will abide by the constitution. We have looked at what our President has done and as a party we are happy with his achievements; if he comes up today to say he wants to contest, we will support him but to begin to throw things like automatic ticket, right of first refusal, they don’t exist in our constitution.” Speaking in a similar vein, Okorocha on Thursday said all candidates on the party’s platform must emerge through transparent democratic process.
Photo Credit: Getty
