Photo:( L-R) Tinubu, Osinbajo, Amaechi.
The APC presidential campaign team of Sen Bola Tinubu is enmeshed in a litany of challenges that border on a cold war of intra-party distrust, disharmony and the politics of exclusion.
Periscope International gathered that some of those who contested for the presidential ticket of the party during the primary election in May, and lost or withdrew from the race, have either been sidelined or have tactically withdrawn their support for Tinubu.
A party source familiar with the goings on in the campaign team said that prominent politicians like Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, former Minister of Transportation,Rotimi Amaechi, Senate President Ahmed Lawan, among others, have been kept in the dark about the presidential campaign team’s plans.
The source said that the APC flag bearer sidelined the aforementioned key players and preferred to work with APC governors, especially those from northern states who advised him to choose a northern Muslim running mate.
According to the party stalwart, who preferred not to be named, Osinbajo and Amaechi may not support the Tinubu presidential campaign bandwagon because of their apparent disdain for Tinubu’s decision to settle for a Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket.
He said that while the duo may have irreconcilable differences with Tinubu over his choice of running mate, Tinubu on his part, may have not contacted them, hence keeping them in the dark about the presidential campaign.
For instance, shortly after Tinubu picked his fellow Muslim, former Borno Gov Kashim Shettima as his running mate, a Amaechi’s loyalist, Tonye Cole, immediately resigned his membership of the party, citing the exclusion of Christians as reason.
Also, it would be recalled that Amaechi in 2014 opposed the pairing of President Muhammadu Buhari with another Muslim, Tinubu as his running mate, a protest that culminated in the jettisoning of Tinubu for Osinbajo, hence his decision to sit on the fence in the current dispensation.
Already, last week, a coalition of Northern Christians led by former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara and former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, announced the withdrawal of their support for Tinubu over the controversial Muslim-Muslim ticket, which they described as “ungodly and dead on arrival.”
Apart from Vice President Osinbajo, who seems to have developed a cold feet towards Tinubu’s presidential campaign, other APC stalwarts like Adamawa Sen Elisha Abbo, Interior Minister, Rauf Aregbesola and many more, may not support the campaign.
Just last week, the Labour Party claimed that there were fifth columnists within the ruling APC and boasted that no fewer than five APC governors were working for Mr Peter Obi, the party’s presidential candidate for the 2023 presidential election.
