Consensus Candidate: Tambuwal Distances Self From Saraki, Mohammed’s Emergence

A file photo of Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Tambuwal.

Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Tambuwal, has dissociated himself from the consensus arrangement that led to the emergence of Dr Bukola Saraki and Governor Bala Mohammed as the proposed presidential candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

The Director of Organisation and Mobilisation for the Tambuwal Campaign Organisation (TCO), Nicholas Msheliza, made the position of the governor known in a statement on Friday.

Saraki is the immediate past President of the Senate and former governor of Kwara State while Mohammed is the incumbent governor of Bauchi State.

The trio of Tambuwal, Saraki, and Mohammed has embarked on a tour of states with an objective to consult with other presidential aspirants and chieftains of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), in a bid to ensure the emergence of a northerner as the party’s candidate in the coming elections.

After weeks of consultations, the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) of the PDP Governor Mohammed and Senator Saraki as their consensus candidates, following a meeting on Friday in Minna, Niger State.

The group which met with former Military President, General Ibrahim Babangida, explained that the trio alongside another aspirant, Mohammed Hayatu-Deen, presented themselves for the consensus.

The trio met in Bauchi State on March 20, 2022.

They later endorsed Mohammed and Saraki following a vote and urged both aspirants to work together for further consultations to come up with one consensus candidate.

Reacting to the development, Msheliza insisted that the consensus arrangement initially agreed had failed before the NEF’s meeting, stressing that Tambuwal would not renege in his pursuit of becoming the next president.

Read the full statement by TCO below:

The attention of the Tambuwal Campaign Organisation (TCO) has been drawn to a news item that former Senate President, Bukola Saraki and Gov. Bala Muhammad of Bauchi state have emerged as consensus candidates from amongst the four of us announced at a meeting in Minna, Niger state.

This is, to be candid and forthright, not correct.

The correct situation is that the team met on Wednesday 20th April 2022, at Bauchi Governor’s lodge in Abuja and had a review meeting; and, unanimously agreed that the consensus arrangement was not working.

The team further agreed that Sen. Saraki should come up with a draft statement on how to communicate this decision to the Nigerian public. This was the last time that members of the team sat and mutually agreed on anything.

The proposed meeting to review and vet the statement scheduled for 10pm on the same day was aborted unilaterally by Sen. Saraki via a WhatsApp message.

However, on Thursday, 21st, 2022, same Sen Saraki circulated yet another WhatsApp message suggesting that members of the team should head to Minna for a meeting on Friday, Gov. Tambuwal reached other members of the team and informed them that he stands by the decision of the team that the initiative is not working.

This is the reason Gov. Tambuwal was absent at today’s (Friday) meeting in Minna. As a result, therefore, the outcome of the Minna meeting has no consequence or any implication on the aspiration of Gov. Tambuwal, who had earlier informed his colleagues of maintaining their agreed position that the initiative has collapsed.

Members of the public should be reminded that what was canvassed for was a consensus candidate and not consensus candidates.

For the avoidance of doubt, Gov Tambuwal has submitted his presidential nomination forms and now that the quest for a consensus candidate out of the four has clearly collapsed, will go ahead and face screening and indeed contest the PDP presidential primaries.

This is in consonance with his acclaimed outlook as a pan-Nigerian candidate, with a pedigree of national service as the Speaker of the Federal House of Representatives, life member of the Body of Benchers, and now in his second and final term as Governor of Sokoto state.

Nicholas Msheliza

Director, Organisation and Mobilisation for TCO

April 22, 2022

Abuja