As the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC), searches for a running mate for its presidential flagbearer, General Muhammadu Buhari (retd), it has been revealed that out of about half a dozen aspirants to the office, the former Commissioner of Justice and Attorney General, Prof Yemi Osibajo (SAN), now tops the list.Other aspirants to the office are Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN); immediate past Governor of Ekiti State, Dr. John Kayode Fayemi; Edo and Rivers States Governors, Adam Aliyu Oshiomhole and Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi respectively.It was reliably gathered that at the meeting of the party’s elders on Sunday night in Lagos, a lot of criteria were examined before zeroing on Osibajo, who served as Justice Commissioner under former Governor Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
It was learnt that issues of religion, natural resources, President Goodluck Jonathan’s factor, bloc votes as well as pedigree, electoral value and antecedents were tabled and exhaustively discussed before arriving at the legal practitioner, described by the elders present as, “brilliant, well exposed and highly intelligent.”
A source close to the meeting said that, “somebody from the South-south would have been our choice because of the zone’s resources and President Jonathan factor,” disclosing however that, “if the whole of the South-west is not taken care of, it means we, as senior partner in the marriage would be pushed to the third position in the scheme of things.”
The source explained further that, “if Buhari, a northerner becomes President and a South-south man becomes his vice, what can be left for us is the Senate President, which is like playing third fiddle in a coalition of which we are the founder.”
The choice of the South-west to produce the vice presidential running mate, our correspondent gathered was also hinged on the bloc votes expected from the zone where Tinubu is unarguably the political play master. And since Osibajo is his ‘political boy’ the vice president’s slot is as good as conceded to him (Tinubu).
As Tinubu’s loyalist, Osibajo is expected to use the structure of his boss to launch himself to more political relevance and being a brilliant professional, it is believed that the easy going scholar would blend in no time.
The issue of religion eliminated Fashola, whose achievement in office has been a reference point in Nigeria, while Oshiomhole and Amaechi, as popular as they are as grassroots mobilizers and great performers, were eliminated because of their small catchment areas.
If feelers are anything to go by, the party will announce its vice presidential candidate today or before the week runs out.
Ndi ara,that is there business.
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