2023 Presidency: Akande, Osoba To Meet Tinubu, Osinbajo Over APC Ticket

Ahead of the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential primary, leaders of the party in the South West are set to meet with presidential hopefuls from the zone over the party’s presidential ticket.

CityNews Nigeria learnt that the crucial meeting will take place on Friday at the Lagos State Government House in Marina.

The meeting will be chaired by the interim National Chairman of the APC and former Governor of Osun State, Chief Bisi Akande.

Also, the meeting will be attended by a former Governor of Ogun State, Chief Olusegun Osoba, party stakeholders, and other critical APC leaders in the South West.

It was gathered that APC leaders in the region are worried over the number of aspirants that have emerged to contest the party’s presidential ticket and vie for the 2023 presidency.

In order to save the South West from losing the ticket, it is understood that the APC leaders called the meeting to work out a way to cut down the number of presidential hopefuls from the zone.

The APC leaders are also concerned about the possible outcome because of the bad blood the ambition of the leading contenders for the APC ticket has already generated.

Supporters of the APC National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu have accused Vice President Osinbajo of betrayal for coming out to contest against his political benefactor.

Expected at the meeting are Osinbajo, Tinubu; Governor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State; former Ogun governor, Ibikunle Amosun, and other presidential hopefuls from the region.

“The South West is the biggest investor in APC. The political marriage between the then Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) and Congress for Progressive Changes (CPC) gave birth to APC. ACN came to the merger with 6 governors against 1 governor from CPC.

“The South West sacrificed most for APC. It is only natural that the region should produce the successor to President Muhammadu Buhari from North West.

“Akande, who is well respected across political divides in the region, and other conveners of the meeting want to see that the list of aspirants from the South West is pruned down so that the region does not lose out of the presidential ticket of APC.

“The leaders are worried that if the South West does not get its act together, we may lose the APC presidential ticket to another region. It is even more worrisome that the four aspirants from APC are from the same political family.

“The South East is making a legitimate claim to the presidency. Even the South South that just had the presidency with President Jonathan wants a shot at it again with aspirants coming out of the region.”