Emerging report reaching Post-Nigeria, revealed that the body language of the Northerners, suggest that President Muhammadu Buhari may not survive the political intrigue and horse trading ahead of 2019, as Politicians of Northern extraction are now jostling for the coveted seat.
According to available report seen by Post-Nigeria, the Northern Politicians who are struggling to replace Buhari in 2019 are; former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar; erstwhile Governor of Jigawa State, Sule Lamido; his counterpart in Kano State, Rabiu Kwankwaso; and former National Security Adviser to the late Head of State, Gen. Sani Abacha, Hamzah Al-Mustapha.
Recall, that Atiku has been in the race since 2007, and his body language still gives a clear impression that his eyes are still very much on the exalted seat.
Though, a founding member of the ruling APC, there are strong indications that the former number two citizen, may eventually settle for the Presidential ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the event that Buhari decides to go for the race, or anoints a particular accepted candidate.
The former Vice President, had left the PDP twice. Following the power play and intrigues between him and his former boss in the build up to the 2007 general elections, he ditched the PDP and ran against late President, Musa Umar Yar’Adua, on the platform of the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN.
He also contested the Presidential ticket of the APC against Buhari in 2015, but was defeated. Atiku is now said to be holding talks with leaders of the PDP, for the 2019 Presidential ticket.
For this move, Post-Nigeria gathered that he may have to contend with Lamido, who according to a reliable source, has already intimated all the 36 States Chairmen of the party, of his Presidential ambition.
Unlike his other contenders, Sule Lamido, has not hidden his desire to contest the 2019 Presidential race. One striking thing about Lamido’s ambition, is that he is not thinking of any alternative platform to actualise his dream, in spite of the leadership challenges confronting the PDP.
Perhaps, one issue Lamido may have to contend with as he pursues his ambition, is the alleged move by Atiku to stage a comeback to the PDP.
While Atiku had dumped the party twice for alternative platforms in the previous elections, Lamido has remained a consistent supporter of the party.
Kwankwaso on the other hand, is also not leaving any stone unturned in his aspiration to govern the country. In 2015, he contested the Presidential ticket of the APC against Buhari, and emerged the second leading candidate.
Ahead of the 2019 election, it was gathered that he had put structures in place across the 36 States of the federation.
Interestingly, back at home, Kwankwaso has been having a running battle with his former Deputy, who is now the Governor of the State, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje.
The alleged frosty relationship between him and the Governor, has been seen by many as a handiwork of the cabal in the Presidency, who feels that there is a need to decimate his political following, ahead of the 2019 Presidential election, to forestall a repeat of what happened in the 2015 primaries, held at Onikan Stadium, in Lagos.
However, while Kwankwaso’s political structure, the Kwankwasiyya, which he had established before the 2011 general elections, has been literally routed in the face of the lingering face off, his network has expanded to other States of the federation, with effective coordinators on ground.
Though a new entrant into the Presidential race, Al-Mustapha, has been busy meeting with relevant interest groups across the States of the federation, preparatory to the formal declaration of his Presidential ambition, for the 2019 elections.
A source close to the former NSA, recently disclosed that the Green Party of Nigeria, had already been registered as a platform to actualise his ambition, adding that, response so far has been very encouraging.
“Although it is a new party, one of our strategies is to woo aggrieved supporters of the leading political parties. For now, we have been busy with grassroots mobilisation. And the response we are getting has been quite overwhelming”, a source said.
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