Uzodinma: Tinubu, Not APC Govs, Has Final Say On Running Mate

•Says issue should not threaten national unity

Deji Elumoye

Governor Hope Uzodinma of Imo State, has declared that the final say about who becomes the vice-presidential candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) was solely that of the party’s standard bearer, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

He, however, said the search for a credible running mate to Tinubu should not be allowed to threaten the nation’s unity.

Uzodinma, who spoke with newsmen after meeting President Muhammadu Buhari at the State House, Abuja Tuesday, emphasised that the 22 APC governors could not impose any running mate on Tinubu.

His words: “The decision also to choose a running mate does not reside with any of us the governors. It is the presidential candidate that will look at the local characteristics and every factor, political and apolitical that will make him win his election and take the decision. So, it’s not a decision that we will sit here and take for the candidate.”

He noted that APC having held a successful convention that led to the emergence of Tinubu as the party’s flag bearer, contrary to the expectations of some people, the choice of a running mate would take into considerations all the indices that will promote fairness and unity of the country.

“But we are looking for united Nigeria, where governance will be the issue, where a president would be a judged by his capacity to deliver democratic dividends, develop Nigeria to look like other parts of the Western world where democracy is working.

“I don’t want us to reduce governance in Nigeria to certain things that will encourage divisiveness, rather, we should be a united Nigeria, be our brother’s keepers, have a president of Nigeria that will be a president representing, every tribe, every religion, every denomination. And when we get there, we will cross the bridge,” he said.

Asked if he foresaw a governor as running mate to Tinubu, Uzodinma said, “Why not? Ahmed Tinubu, have you forgotten he was a governor for eight years? If he chooses a governor so be it, we will support it. For now, we are no longer talking about who becomes running mate and who is not running mate.

“I have told you whose decision it is. The next thing as party leaders now and opinion leaders, is for us to rise up, mobilise the quality and get members of our party to commit to a successful election by 2023, so that our president that is leaving will also be handing over to our own president of APC, that is our preoccupation now – how to win the election,” he said.

On the alleged move by Tinubu to run with a Muslim/Muslim ticket, the Imo governor argued that the Nigerian Constitution does not dwell on religion as a factor for the selection of presidential running mate.

According to him: “There is no where in the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, where religion is a factor or characteristic as to who becomes the president or who becomes the running mate.

“I don’t want us to reduce governance in Nigeria to certain things that will encourage divisiveness. Rather, we should be a united Nigeria, be our brother’s keepers, have a president of Nigeria, that will be a president representing every tribe, every religion, every denomination, and when we get there, we will cross the bridge.”

Uzodinma admonished that each section of the country required the others to be able to produce the president, saying the South East zone would work on what has so far prevented it reaching the goal.

He said, “When I appeared on Channels in the morning of the convention I told you that one of the conventions governing our polity in Nigeria is power shift. That power comes to the north and goes to the south. When power came to the south, in 1999, we ceded it to South West and all of us voted as Nigerians.

“The next time power came to the South, it went to South South and all of us voted as Nigerians. We expected that now that power came back to the South, it will go to South East but this is not a decision of a geopolitical zone alone.

“No geopolitical zone can become a president without the participation of other political zones. So, when you don’t get the cooperation, you begin to find out why and you work towards getting the cooperation next time, because it has to be united country for you to become a president.

“We’re not talking about president of South East, president South South or president of South West. We are talking of the President of Nigeria. For a Southerner to become a president, he needs to vote for North, for northerner to become the president, he needs the vote from the South.

“In our constitution, two-thirds of the states, you must have at least minimum of 25% votes registered in those states. Today, we’ll look at the guidelines. We’ll look at the rules. Our country is a rule-driven country. And the grund norm is the constitution of the country.

“So, we’re working with it. All we’re saying is that for equity, for fairness for justice, that there’s certain sentiments to be considered when we’re taking national decisions, but we don’t think that is enough to disorganise our country. We must move forward.”