*why the north has abandoned Buhari
Ahead of the 2015 Presidential election, key northern leaders in the APC have thrown their weight behind a Rabiu Kwankwaso/Chibuike Amaechi ticket to contend with President Jonathan. This, according to feelers, is the first option.
The second option, sources at the meeting said would be Aminu Tambuwal/Rochas Okorocha ticket.
The Kano meeting of APC northern leaders resolved to jettison the idea of fielding Buhari because of his lack of acceptance and popularity in the South and North Central region.
AS a signal of the opposition that former Head of State, Alhaji Muhammadu Buhaari, is currently facing within the All Progressives Congress (APC), posters announcing his 2015 presidential bid, which were earlier pasted on walls and other strategic places in the ancient city of Kano, have been removed by unknown people.
According to the source, the inner circle members of the party were of the view that General Buhari is not only too old for the job, he is also not a sellable material, having contested the presidential race and lost on three different occasions.
It was their view that the same antecedents and antics that worked against him in 2003, 2007 and 2011 were still in the minds of the electorate, who, the source said, were spread across the northern parts of the country.
It was also stated that the crisis that erupted after the presidential election in 2011 in which many youths lost their lives may work against him and this may work have negative impact on the party.
It was also stated by the source that most of well-to-do and heavy weight politicians in the party may not with to deploy their financial war chest to help the APC in prosecuting the election.
Notable personalities Kano State governor, Dr Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso and the speaker of the House of the Representatives, Honourable Aminu Tambuwal are believed to have interest in contesting the presidential election, and may not throw their weight behind Buhari’s presidential candidature.
Already, former vice president, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has declared his intention to take another shot at the exalted position.
It was said that series of underground meetings were had been held on how to convince General Buhari to step down and endorse one aspirant among Atiku, Tambuwal and Kwankwaso.
Said the source: “If he is adamant on contesting the presidential primary, the members will let him do so, but they may work against him at the APC presidential primary.
“In the end, Buhari may resolve to pull out of the APC and to contest the presidential election on the platform of another party ,as he did during the 2011 presidential election build-up, when he pulled out from the defunct All Nigeria People’s Party (ANPP) and hurriedly formed the defunct Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) after being tactically edged out by the former presidential candidate of the defunct ANPP, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau.
“A political pandora’s box will unfold from this month, but take it or leave it, Buhari will not get the ticket of the APC for the 2015 presidential election, and this will probably force his exit from the party.”
This, the source said, might cause crisis within the party and lead to mass exodus of highly notable members of the party and eventually affect the chance of the party at the polls.
This, he said, could pave the way for an easy ride by President Goodluck Jonathan in his effort to secure a second term of office.
