There was high wire politicking at the national convention of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the Teslim Balogun Stadium in Lagos yesterday, making consensus difficult to reach.

Efforts to ensure that the APC governors and some national leaders of the party give a bloc vote to former

Head of State, General Muhammadu Buhari, failed.

The governors and the party national leaders, led by a former governor of Lagos State, Bola Tinubu, were said to have met in a last-minute effort to save the day at Protea Hotel in Ikeja yesterday evening. The meeting ended in deadlock.

A meeting that took place earlier on Tuesday night was also said to have ended in a stalemate too.

To blackmail the governors to submission, the media strategists of the presidential aspirant and those favourably disposed to a Buhari candidacy inundated the media with the news that 12 of the governors had declared support for him.

Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola, was quoted to have said: “I am tired of this confusion and will be better disposed to asking delegates from my state (Osun) to go ahead and vote according to their preferences.”

It was also gathered that the Buhari media strategists created more confusion by going to town spreading the news that Kwankwaso, Okorocha and Nda-Isaiah had stepped down for Buhari, but the camps of the other aspirants denied the report, saying their principals did not step down for anybody.

The other four aspirants for the presidential primaries are: former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso of Kano State, Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State and the Publisher of Leadership newspapers, Sam Nda-Isaiah.

Sources said the major issue at stake that resulted in the confusion had to do with who will be the running mate of Buhari if he emerges the presidential candidate.

It was alleged that Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi, is behind the scheming to get the votes of the governors for Buhari, so that he could get the vice president’s slot, that was why he was trying to impress Buhari ahead of the primaries.

•Credit: Newswatch Times. Photo of convention venue courtesy of Channels TV.

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