PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari is set to meet with presidential aspirants in the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
The meeting is expected to take place on Saturday night, or Sunday.
The ruling party has scheduled its presidential primaries for Monday 6th June to Wednesday 8th June, 2022.
The President will be embarking on a trip to Ghana today (Saturday) and is expected to return later in the day.
Buhari is expected to meet with the aspirants on Saturday night or Sunday.
The President had earlier, on Tuesday, met with APC governors ahead of the party’s convention.
Buhari, at the meeting, asked governors under the APC to accord him the privilege of choosing his successor among the party’s long list of presidential aspirants.
He spoke of the need to provide effective and strong leadership for the party to stay in power at all levels beyond his administration.
“As I begin the final year of my second term as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and leader of the party, I recognise the compelling need for me to provide stronger leadership to the party under this transition process and to ensure that it happens in an orderly manner,” he said.
“Such leadership is required so that the party remains strong and united. It is also needed to improve our electoral fortunes by ensuring that it retains power at the centre, holds the great majority in various legislative chambers and also gains an additional number of states.
“In keeping with the established internal policies of the party and as we approach the convention in a few days, therefore, I wish to solicit the reciprocity and support of the governors and other stakeholders in picking my successor, who would fly the flag of our party for election into the Office of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in 2023,” Buhari added.
The President told the governors that the party’s presidential “candidate must be someone who would give the Nigerian masses a sense of victory and confidence even before the elections”.
He appealed to all the governors “to allow our interests to converge, our focus to remain on the changing dynamics of our environment, the expectations of our citizens and the global community.”
Buhari also charged the governors to ensure that the forthcoming convention, where a presidential candidate will be selected, reflects all the values and virtues of the party.
Presidential aspirants under the APC include Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, former Lagos State Governor Bola Tinubu, Senate President Ahmad Lawan, and former ministers Rotimi Amaechi Ogbonnaya Onu, Godswill Akpabio, and Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba.
Others include Ekiti state governor Kayode Fayemi, Kogi state governor Yahaya Bello, his Ebonyi State counterpart, Dave Umahi, Ben Ayade of Cross River)state and Badaru Abubakar of Jigawa.
Others on the list are former Senate President Ken Nnamani, former House of Representatives Speaker Dimeji Bankole, Ibikunle Amosun, Ajayi Boroffice, Ikeobasi Mokelu Rochas Okorocha, Tunde Bakare, Uju Ken-Ohanenye, Nicholas Felix, Ahmad Rufai Sani and Tein Jack-Rich.
A reporter with the ICIR
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