All the 24 governors elected on the platform of the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) on Tuesday announced their endorsement of President Muhammadu Buhari’s candidature for the 2019 presidential election.
Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo made the position of the governors known to State House correspondents after a closed-door meeting with the President at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The President had, at the last APC National Executive Committee meeting, declared his intention to run for the second term in 2019.
Mr. Okorocha told the correspondents that they communicated their support for the President’s reelection bid at the meeting.
“We came to welcome him back and to commend him for his boldness and courage to declare his intention to run for the second term as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, which we the 24 governors of the APC duly support.
“And we have come to encourage him that he must go ahead with his vision to rescue Nigeria from its present challenges,’’ he said.
According to him, the meeting also addressed the issue of the forthcoming convention and congresses in order to make it hitch-free.
He said the president and governors resolved to produce a strong party chairman that could deliver tangible results for the party in the forthcoming general election.
He added that “we also agreed that we will not allow the issue of many contestants to destroy our party.’’
The governor, who is also the Chairman of APC Governors’ Forum, dismissed the suggestions that the meeting was convened to endorse former governor of Edo, Adams Oshiomole as next APC National Chairman.
He, however, disclosed that the governors would soon make their stance known on the subject matter, adding that the “public will be duly briefed in due course.
The Secretary to the Government of the Federation, who was part of the meeting, also disclosed that new leadership of the APC from the ward, local government, state and the federal levels might emerge through consensus.
Those who attended the meeting included Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, as well as the Chief of Staff to the President, Abba Kyari.
APC state governors in attendance were Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna state, Yahaya Bello of Kogi, Simon Lalung of Plateau, Jubrila Bindow of Adamawa and Abdulaziz Yari of Zamfara.
Others were Rochas Okorocha of Imo, Abdulahi Ganduje of Kano, Kashim Shettima of Borno, Abubakar Sani Bello of Niger, Tanko Almakura of Nassarawa, Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo, Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun, Godwin Obaseki of Edo and Abubakar Badaru of Jigawa.
-NAN
