CHAIRMAN of the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential screening committee John Odigie-Oyegun has said only one aspirant disagreed with consensus as a means of selecting the party’s candidate for the 2023 general elections.
Oyegun, who made this known when he submitted the panel’s report to the party’s National Chairman Abdullahi Adamu on Friday, said the aspirant said he would only accept the consensus option if he was the one selected.
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“We engaged every aspirant on the issue of consensus and it was a pleasant surprise that 99 per cent agreed that the party is supreme and whatever the party finally decides, with proper consultation, they were likely to accept.
“There is only one person that said I will accept consensus as long as it is based on me.
“So, I think it is a point I need to emphasise on it. That gives you a way in the hours ahead to trim down even more drastically. But finally, we think we should not be afraid of the contested primary if anybody insists on the contest.”
Although Oyegun did not mention the name of the aspirant, former Lagos State governor Ahmed Tinubu, who is one of the of the aspirants has insisted on primaries that would guarantee a broader acceptance of the individual to be elected.
Tinubu believes that any discussions of consensus could plunge the party into chaos.
Meanwhile, Oyegun had announced that the panel disqualified 10 out of the 23 aspirants.
According to him, only 13 out of the 23 aspirants screened were cleared by his committee.
The list of the aspirants cleared cleared to participate at the party’s presidential primary, scheduled to hold between June 6 and 8, and those disqualified from participating in the event, is yet to be made public at press time.
However, Oyegun hinted that youthful aspirants made the list.
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