It is a crowded race for the presidential ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as the main opposition party holds its national convention today in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, to elect it presidential candidate for the 2019 general elections. The build-up to the party’s primary has been charcterised by power-play and intrigues given the vast number interested in the ticket.
Today’s contest could be likened to the 1998 convention in Jos, Plateau State in which Chief Olusegun Obasanjo emerged as the party’s candidate for the 1999 presidential election as other presidential primaries between then and 2015 have been to affirm a sitting president seeking for a second term, or one, in which an incumbent used party machinery to affirm his anointed. Thirteen aspirants are contesting the primaries to fly the party’s flag in the presidential election billed to hold on February 16, 2019 and their fate would be decided by 3,619 delegates expected to vote at the convention. They are former Vice President Atiku Abubakar; Senate President, Bukola Saraki; former Senate President, David Mark; Governors Aminu Tambuwal (Sokoto) and Ibrahim Dankwambo (Gombe). Others former Governors Sule Lamido (Jigawa), Rabiu Kwankwaso (Kano), Attahiru Bafarawa (Sokoto), Ahmed Makarfi (Kaduna) and Jonah Jang (Plateau); former minister of Special Duties, Tanimu Turaki and a former senator, Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed. Ordinarily, the race for the PDP presidential ticket would not have been intense as it is being an opposition party, but recent developments in the polity have buoyed its leadership and members and as a result, raised the party’s hope of regaining the presidency, which it lost in the 2015 general elections. First, the party was able to resolve the leadership crisis it was plunged into immediately after the last general elections. The battle for the control of the PDP between Senator Ali Modu Sheriff and Senator Ahmed Makarfi almost brought the party to its knees and it took the Supreme Court’s judgement of July 12, 2017, that sacked Sheriff to resolve the intractable leadership crisis which lasted for about 14 months. That consequently paved the way for a rebuilding process that commenced with the August 12 non-elective convention of the party. It was at the convention that the December 9, 2017 date was agreed on for the party’s elective convention to choose a new National Working Committee (NWC) to take over from the National Caretaker Committee. The elective convention saw the emergence of a former acting National Chairman of the party, Prince Uche Secondus as national chairman and it has been rebuilding of the former ruling party since then. Most significant in the confidence that members of the PDP have going into the 2019 elections is the recent return of its bigwigs, who dumped it for the All Progressives Congress (APC) ahead of the 2015 poll. They include Atiku, Saraki, Tambuwal and Kwankwaso. Others are Governors Samuel Ortom (Benue) and Abdulfattah Ahmed (Kwara), among scores of members of the National Assembly. Of the 13 aspirants, 12 are from the North. Osifo is the only contender from the South though the PDP had announced in 2015 that it will pick its presidential candidate for the next election from the North. The party took the decision after it received the report of its Post-2015 Elections Review Committee. The committee’s chairman and Deputy Senate president, Ike Ekweremadu, had while presenting the report, advised the party to strictly apply the zoning principle at all levels. He said: “Since the last president of PDP extraction came from the southern part of Nigeria, it is recommended that PDP’s presidential candidate in the 2019 general elections should come from the northern part of the country in accordance with the popular views expressed in the submissions to the committee. This will also assuage any ill feelings in the North over any perceived breach of the party’s zoning principle.”
Atiku: A former vice president on a familiar path
The former Vice President has never pretended about occupying the country’s number one position. He first took a shot at the presidency in 1993 and placed third after Chief Moshood Abiola and Babagana Kingibe in the Social Democratic Party (SDP) primaries. He was however elected governor of Adamawa State in 1998. While still Governor-elect, he was selected by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo as his running mate and they went on to win the election in February 1999. After his first term as vice president, some governors elected on the platform of the then ruling party plotted to deny Obasanjo a second term. The plan was to hand Atiku the party’s presidential ticket in that year’s general elections, but he opted for a joint a ticket with his principal and both won the election. However, the botched plot pitched him against Obasanjo and the cold war that ensued after their inauguration, degenerated to a bitter political battle by 2006, when Atiku declared his ambition to succeed Obasanjo. Obasanjo’s insistence that Atiku will not succeed him forced the then vice president to leave the PDP for the defunct Action Congress (AC), which handed him its presidential ticket. The election was won by Yar’Adua (PDP). Atiku rejected the result and called for its cancellation, describing it as Nigeria’s worst election. He, however, returned to the PDP in 2009. While his return was initially resisted by his state chapter of the PDP, he was granted a waiver by the party’s national leadership. That paved the way for him to contest the 2011 PDP presidential primaries. He was selected by the Northern Elders Political Leaders Forum (NPEF) led by former Minister of Finance, Mallam Adamu Ciroma, as the region’s consensus candidate, but was floored at PDP’s presidential primaries by the then Acting President (Jonathan), who went ahead to win the election. The 2011 defeat did not deter Atiku as he surfaced again in 2014 for the 2015 presidency. He had before then made good his threat of dumping the PDP should the party’s leadership fail to return it to the vision of its founding fathers with his defection to the then opposition APC. Many had believed that he would be the candidate to beat in the APC presidential primaries given his financial strength and political structure, but he lost the ticket to Buhari, who enjoyed the support of party leaders and governors. The former vice president came a shocking third with 954 votes, trailing then Kano State governor, Kwankwaso (974 votes) and Buhari (4,430 votes). With the election won and lost, the former vice president returned to his chain of businesses, but a rumoured 2019 ambition emanated late 2015. It was alleged then that Atiku hosted political meetings in Dubai Dubai, United Arab Emirates, apparently to revive his political machinery ahead of the 2019 presidential election, but the former vice president described the rumour as the handiwork of political mischief makers, who want to draw a wedge between him and President Buhari. He said through a statement that he was embarrassed by the deliberate false-hoods being spread against him by political opponents, who are bent on causing distraction for the President at a time all energies should be channeled to help Buhari actualise his Change Agenda. Besides denying the 2019 presidential bid, Atiku added that the success of the Buhari administration has been his preoccupation, and that any true APC member should have the same zeal. But, denial being another name for politics, it was not long the picture became clear that the former vice president will take another shot at the presidency. However, there was a roadblock to this quest – President Buhari’s second term bid. This seeming barrier to Atiku’s aspiration, apparently forced him to resign from the APC on November 24, 2017. He hinged his decision on APC’s failure to deliver on its promises to Nigerians, who, according to him, have long been desperate for improved economic interventions. While the former vice president promised then to take time to ponder about his next political move, it was obvious that he would be returning to his former party. This belief manifested, when he formally returned to the PDP and it did not take long he declared his presidential ambition. Going into the contest for the PDP ticket, the former vice president is banking on the political structure he had built right from his days in the Peoples Democratic Movement (PDM) pioneered by Late General Shehu Musa Yar’adua. The group accounted for Yar’adua’s impressive performance across the country during the 1992 presidential primaries of the defunct Social Democratic Party (SDP) in the aborted Third Republic. It was also claimed that the PDM structure was instrumental to the emergence of the late Chief MKO Abiola as the flag bearer of the party in the 1993 presidential election. It was later to play active roles in the transition programmes of the subsequent regimes of late Generals Sani Abacha and Abubakar Abdulsalami, especially in 1999, when it was in the forefront in the emergence of Obasanjo as the PDP presidential candidate. It was in recognition of PDM’s influence that Atiku, who took over the leadership of the group after Yar’Adua’s death, emerged as running mate to Obasanjo at the poll. Besides political structure, Atiku has warmed himself into the hearts of many Nigerians by rekindling the restructuring debate. He is of the view that Nigeria as currently constituted is not working and advocates greater autonomy to states to resolve the country’s multi-faceted internal crisis. No doubt, the former vice president is throwing all he has into the presidential bid and the reasons are not farfetched. Age is also not on his side, which explains why he cannot afford to vie for the poll. He is 72 and perhaps, 2019 would be the last opportunity for him to be president. He would be 77 by 2023, when power is expected to return to the South and another eight years of southern presidency means that he would 85 in 2031, when power will return to the North if the power shift arrangement still subsists by then. The question against this backdrop is: Will Atiku still have the strength for a presidential project, and what happens if a new power bloc emerges in the North by then? Giving his all to the 2019 project unlike some of the aspirants, Atiku has not only set up a campaign organization headed by a former governor of Ogun State, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, but has criss-crossed the country, consulting with relevant stakeholders. While it is believed that he is in a pole position to pick the PDP ticket, there is no doubt that he has governors’ elected on the platform of the party to contend with. The governors are said to be disposed to a younger candidate, who is likely to listen to them should the party win the presidential election.
Kwankwaso: Hopes to bring 2014 experience to bear
The former governor of Kano State (now senator) contested the APC presidential primaries in 2014 and came second with 974 votes behind Buhari, who won with 4,430 votes. Though many did not give Kwankwaso, who was governor from 1999-2003 and 2011-2015, a chance in the APC presidential primary, he proved his worth by placing ahead of highly rated former Vice President Atiku Abubakar. The failed presidential bid however did not deter him as he contested for Kano Central senatorial district seat, which he won. He defeated the then incumbent, Senator Bashir Lado of the PDP. No doubt, Kwankwaso is popular in the North, especially in his home state of Kano, given his pro-northern disposition and has his political movement – Kwankwasiya – which boasts of large followership to bank on, he would have his former ally and successor, Umar Ganduje, to contend with before he could make any headway in his presidential ambition. Both worked together as a governor and a deputy for eight years and enjoyed a harmonious working relationship that was devoid of rancour, but they fell apart five months after the 2015 elections. The rift was initially downplayed by both camps even though discerning minds knew that all was not well, especially the way the former decided to stay put in Abuja after handing over to Ganduje, who on assumption office went to town with a tale of huge debt. The Transition Committee Ganduje set up had disclosed before the inauguration that Kwankwaso, not only left an empty treasury, but an additional liability of N379 billion although Ganduje later came out to defend his former boss, declaring that the huge liabilities he inherited was not a crime. His defence, notwithstanding, some analysts reasoned then that it was a matter of time the Pandora Box was opened. And as predicted, the cold war later turned to an open confrontation. The aftermath was Kwankwaso’s recent defection from the APC to the PDP and as expected, his presidential bid, though on the platform of the opposition party, rekindled his feud with Ganduje, a known supporter of Buhari. A major challenge Kwankwaso is likely to face if he gets the PDP ticket is acceptance in the southern part of the country given his pro-northern stance. His position that the Federal Government disregards the onshore/offshore dichotomy in deciding oil revenue upon which derivation is paid to littoral states because it is responsible for the imbalance that has worsened poverty in the North, while he was governor still resonates in the consciousness of most southerners, especially the people of the oil-rich Niger Delta. He also opposed the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIP) during the public hearing in its regard, warning then northern federal legislators against allowing the bill’s passage. Some people in the South-East have also not forgotten how Kwankwaso influenced former President Goodluck Jonathan to sack Eze Festus Odimegwu as chairman of the National Population Commission (NPC) for his position on the credibility of Nigeria’s census exercises.
Saraki: The master strategist aims higher
The Senate president and former governor of Kwara State (2003 to 2011), had his eyes on the PDP presidential ticket, but he kept his game plan to his chest until almost the eleventh hour. Some analysts insist that it was his presidential ambition that informed his recent defection from the APC to the PDP though he cited that fifth columnists pushed him out of the ruling party. Like others, the scion of the Saraki Political Dynasty (his father, Chief Olusola Saraki was Second Republic Senate Leader) boasts of a rich political profile that eminently qualifies him for president. His political career began, when he was appointed Special Assistant to President Obasanjo on Budget in 2000. While holding this position, he initiated the Fiscal Responsibility Bill and served on the Economic Policy Coordination Committee, where he was responsible for the formulation and implementation of several key economic policies for Nigeria. In 2003, he ran for the office of governor of Kwara State on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and won. He was re-elected in 2007 and at a time served as Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF). Saraki is said to be banking on the support of the National Assembly, particularly the Senate, which he presides. The upper legislative chamber has 16 former governors in its fold, and Saturday Telegraph learnt that they are bent on having a hand in who emerges the next president. Though the ex-governors no longer call the shots in their respective states, there is no doubt that they still wield political influence as most them installed their cronies as successors before berthing at the Senate. They also have the financial muscle to fund electioneering projects. Should the former governors go ahead with their plan, Saraki is likely to be favoured. The Senate president is from the North (North Central) and enjoys political goodwill that spans across the various zones of the country, which he will leverage on. Age is also on his side as the consensus among Nigerians is that it is time to elect a more vibrant person as president. But, a major impediment to the Senate president’s ambition is that his zone (North Central) is most unlikely to get the backing of the core North. The PDP is also unlikely to look towards the zone because the calculation within the party is to pick a candidate from the North-West, where Buhari hails from in other to break his support base and shore up with votes from the South-South and South-East, which are PDP’s strongholds.
Tambuwal: Favoured by PDP governors
The idea of drafting the former Speaker of the House of Representatives and Sokoto State governor into the presidential race was first muted in 2014, when some Northern political leaders reasoned that Buhari should not contest the 2015 presidential election to make way for the younger generation from the region. While the proposal failed and Tambuwal ran for Sokoto governorship and won, his name was popped again ahead of 2019. Though Tambuwal never came out to either affirm or disclaim the plot to draft him into the presidential race to avoid ruffling feathers, his defection to the PDP confirmed what has all along been in the realm of speculation. Tambuwal, who is on his first term as governor, is being considered because of the belief that his candidacy will not only enjoy the support of the North, but other sections of the country. The Sokoto State governor was able to build political bridges between the North and the South, while he was Speaker of the House of Representatives. He is also in the good book of most powerful Northern emirs, and is said to be amenable, which is one quality Northern leaders are insisting on. No doubt, Tambuwal has what it takes to run for the presidency, as he has learnt the political ropes, having started as Personal Assistant on Legislative Affairs to Senator Abdullahi Wali, the then Senate Leader (1999 to 2000), before he contested for a legislative seat as representative of the Kebbe/Tambuwal Federal Constituency in 2003 and later rose to become speaker in 2011. Tambuwal is indisputably the game changer as he is said to have the backing of PDP governors. The belief is that he was assured of the presidential ticket before he made the switch that saw him dumping the APC with his supporters. No doubt, the governors remain a power bloc that cannot be wished away, but the primaries is a delegate election, so it is his ability to convince as many as possible that will determine his success or otherwise.
Lamido: Believes he’s the best man for the job
The former governor of Jigawa State is among the first to declare ambition for the 2019 presidency. Perhaps, being in the opposition PDP gave him the courage to come out in the open with his ambition as he has no sitting president to contend with. He then boasted that President Buhari cannot stop him from becoming president in 2019. He made the comment after the police stopped a rally during which youths in his community urged him to contest the presidential poll. His words: “The desperation by those in authorities of power today must know that the same God that have made Balewa, Ironsi, Gowon, Murtala, Shagari, Buhari, Babangida and Jonathan presidents could do the same for me if Allah so wishes. All this coercion and intimidation was because of my aspiration and I must tell them that no matter what, if Allah has destined that I will be president, they cannot stop me or deter me because that will amount to fighting against the wish of God.” Lamido had before the incident declared that President Buhari lacks the capacity to lead Nigeria out of the woods. “President Buhari is simply incompetent on the provision of the welfare of the citizens because he was never ready for the job, and so, he lacks the capacity to source for the wherewithal to do it well to the satisfaction of Nigerians,” he said. And just recently, he said the anti-corruption fight of the President is bogus. Lamido further claimed that Buhari was corrupt before he became president having worked as chairman of the defunct Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF) in 1994. While the former Minister of Foreign Affairs has what it takes to pick his party’s ticket, he insists the aspirants should be ready to sacrifice their ambitions for a single candidate if the PDP is to unseat APC in 2019.
Turaki: A senior advocate with an aggressive drive
Former Minister of Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Relations, Barrister Kabiru Tanimu Turaki, might not be the regular political household name like some former governors and vice president, who are also in the race for the PDP ticket, but trust this: The Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) is a serious contender for the PDP ticket and he is not making any pretense about it. Since he officially declared his ambition to run for the presidency in 2019 on the platform of the PDP last May, the soft-spoken Turaki has become one of the frontline contenders for the opposition party’s plum ticket. He is one of the early risers in the race that has stepped up nationwide campaign; he has a virile campaign committee, he has been criss-crossing the country soliciting for the support of PDP state chapters and delegates and has also opened the lid on what his programmes would be in the first 100 days in office as president if elected. Although he might not have the deep financial prowess and he may not possess the cult-followership like some others in the race with him, but he is knowledgeable, insightful, and his campaign is gaining traction by the day. For political analysts, his choice of the former governor of Adamawa State, Mr. Boni Haruna, as his Campaign Director- General was seen as strategic. The thinking is that Haruna’s presence in Turaki’s camp is able to neutralize the potency of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar in the North-East. Haruna, a former journalist, became governor of Adamawa State after Atiku who he was attached to as gubernatorial running mate in 1999 was picked by former President Olusegun Obasanjo to become his presidential running mate for the 1999 election. In the usual ways of politicians, both men subsequently parted ways. His political base and strength is Kebbi and the North West. He also has the support of the PDP Former Ministers’ Forum of Nigeria, which he chairs. At 61, he is relatively young among other aspirants in the party and that is seen as a high point in his ambition. Owing to political pundits projection that it is only a candidate from the North-West that can mitigate President Buhari’s influence in the North West, the geo-politico zone with the highest number of registered voters (over 18 million votes), Turaki, who is from the zone is seen as having a bright chance of emerging in this regard. Aside from his outstanding eloquence and grasp on issues in the country, Turaki is not one of those on trial for alleged corruption over their previous roles in government. He was quoted to have said, “I have been investigated severally but nothing has been found against me. I have no EFCC or ICPC case. So I have what Buhari’s supporters believe that he has but Buhari does not have the other attributes that I have. This is the contrast.” However, Turaki cannot be said to have that far-reaching political structure to secure the PDP ticket and eventually win the presidential election. Also, his relationship with the current set of PDP governors cannot be said to be top-notch. And for a race that is excessively monetized, it calls to question, where the Dan Masanin Gwandu, Zarumman Kebbi, will balance the financial demand. Head or tail, the former governorship candidate in Kebbi State is not seeing the contest as a do-or-die affair, he once said, “Anybody who gets this ticket, we have the understanding that all of us will join hands and support him.”
Dankwambo: A thoroughbred technocrat seen as the Northern Star
Since he declared his ambition for president on the platform of the PDP, not a few Nigerians have been curious to weigh the personality of the Gombe State Governor, Dr. Ibrahim Dankwambo, vis-à-vis the position he was aiming for. In a way, it wasn’t until he came out with his aspiration that many interested members of the public knew that he was actually a former Accountant-General of the Federation (AGF). Unlike other politicians with noise around them, the second term governor of Gombe State is a man of quiet conversation regardless of the giant strides his leadership is bringing to the state. But he is eventually unearthed and attracted much public interest since he threw his hat into the ring for 2019 presidency. A thoroughbred technocrat in all sense, Dankwambo, who is 56 years old, appears well prepared for the job having effectively demonstrated astute, visionary leadership and prudent management of resources in public office. Perhaps, the far-reaching leadership of Dankwambo is what has endeared him to notable Nigerians. He is of the opinion that the next president should come from the North-East, but it appears the party is tilting towards the North-West.
Makarfi: Believes that one good turn deserves another
Senator Ahmed Makarfi is one of the early birds in the presidential race and his supporters believe he is the only aspirant from the North-West, who can upstage Buhari in 2019. Makarfi, a refined politician who is cool, calm and calculated in his approach, has been a loyal party man and has a good relationship with governors of the party especially with his role in the heat of leadership crisis of the PDP as the Caretaker Chairman. The former governor of Kaduna State is seen in many quarters as the top choice for the party by the governors in the light of the uncommon leadership he showed by holding forte and reuniting the party during the crisis. Declaring his ambition last June in Kaduna, the former lawmaker said if elected in 2019, restructuring the country, tackling insecurity, fighting corruption with due process and rule of law, improving the economy, reuniting the nation are top among what his administration will do for the country Makarfi, who moved around to galvanise support for his ambition, got the support of former military president, General Ibrahim Babangida, when the former leader described him as the new narration Nigeria desperately need. “I was almost losing hope in the country, as a military man I wouldn’t. But having heard from the distinguished senator, I have become more enlightened and emboldened to say we have hope in Nigeria. “You have my blessings and I will look forward to hearing from you on some of these articulations I heard from you today. Honestly, I feel so proud”, IBB told Makarfi. The former governor who has been active in communicating his plans and programmes for the country if elected has also been a regular face in many of the activities of the PDP across the nation. He may, however, need to appease some aggrieved members of the party who felt shortchanged by the role of his now disbanded Caretaker Committee at the last National Convention of the party.
Bafarawa: Banking on grassroots support
The former governor of Sokoto State was among the founding members of the APC, but had to jump ship to the PDP when his successors, Aliyu Wamakko joined the party. He accused the then APC leadership of giving the party’s structures in the state to then governor. Bafarawa, a 2011 presidential aspirant of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), one of the parties that merged to form the APC, was said to have vowed not to work with Wamakko, his former deputy, and therefore had no option than to join the PDP immediately the latter dumped the PDP for the APC. Like most of the aspirants, Bafarawa is not new to the presidential race. He founded the Democratic Peoples Party (DPP) and became its presidential candidate at the 2007 presidential elections in Nigeria. He is counting on experience to pick the PDP ticket. He said of his ambition: “Politics is my profession. I am a grassroots politician spanning for over four decades. President Buhari is my student. I brought him into politics. I gave him ticket to contest when I was the national chairman of the defunct All Nigeria Peoples Party (APP). Therefore I know how to run the affairs of the country and the party.”
Baba-Ahmed: A university administrator in the race
He is one of the new entrants in the presidential race but Senator Datti Baba- Ahmed is not acting like a greenhorn in the contest. Talk about brilliance, first-rate analytical skills and grassroots politics experience especially at creating upsets, he perfectly fits the bill. Fondly called DBA by his supporters, his political journey started when he was first elected in April 2003 to the House of Representatives for the Zaria Federal Constituency, Kaduna State. He won the election on the platform of the now defunct All Nigeria People’s Party (ANPP). At the 2011 elections, Baba-Ahmed created one of the biggest upsets of the general election of that year when on the on the platform of the Congress For Progressive Change, CPC, defeated two-time Kaduna governor, Ahmed Makarfi, Kaduna North Senatorial district. Interestingly, both men are back together as presidential aspirants of the PDP. He dumped the ruling APC for the PDP in 2017 and he instantly made known his aspiration to the public. He said: “I am a Nigerian and I am contesting on the same Electoral Act and the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, unless they are going to violate it, which we shall challenge. “Muhammadu Buhari is welcome to contest for the Presidency in 2019 and I think it is a healthy practice to have a gentleman of his age, his mould and people who have been in power for the past 50 years contest,” he said. While many opined that it is unclear how Baba-Ahmed intends to get the votes of PDP delegates at the presidential primaries given the heavy weights in the race, but in politics, nothing is certain or uncertain.
Mark: Wants to bring legislative experience to bear
The Benue State born retired Army brigadier general served as Senate president between 2007 and 2015 and has the record of being Nigeria’s longest serving senator, having been in the upper legislative chamber since 1999.Perhaps, it is this legislative experience that Mark intends bringing to bear if elected as president as promised during his declaration that “in two years, if given the opportunity, we will turn the economy of this country round, we will solve these security problems. I think I have got the credentials to be able to do what I have promised my team.” Mark also said his desire is to serve and be remembered as the agent that brought peace, unity and prosperity to all Nigerians. According to him, “a vote for me is a vote for the continuous corporate existence of Nigeria and the preservation of our brotherly heritage.” No doubt, the former Senate president has what it takes to be president, having served as minister and governor during the military era, but winning the Nigerian presidency takes more than experience. As it stands, the odds seems not to favour Mark as the PDP is not looking at the North Central where he hails from, but politics being a game of the possible, his chances of picking the party’s presidential ticket cannot be ruled out.
Jang: Making a case for Middle Belt
The former governor of Plateau State is another ex-governor in the race. Jang held sway in Plateau between 2007 and 2015 before he was elected into the Senate, where he presently represents Plateau North senatorial district. Like most of the aspirants, Jang equally boast of rich profile in public service. He served as military governor of Benue State from August 1985 to August 1986, and as military governor of old Gongola State from August 1986 to December 1987. Jang believes “it is time” for the Middle Belt to rule Nigeria, pledging to accord priority to the anti-corruption war if elected. Interestingly, the senator is currently facing corruption trial on a 12-count charge of allegedly diverting N6.3 billion while he was in office, an allegation he has denied. While many had thought that Jang was in the race to make the number, he recently declared he will you step down for another presidential aspirant even if the party asks him to do so. No doubt, the former governor is eminently qualified for the office of president, but, like other aspirants from the North Central, it is unclear if the party will look towards their zone in the choice of its presidential candidate.
.new telegraph
