Dare Babalola
The North-Central APC Forum has called on President Bola Tinubu to ensure the election of credible national officers at the upcoming All Progressives Congress (APC) national convention.
The APC national convention is set for March 27 and 28, 2026, with elections slated to determine national officers who’ll form the National Working Committee.
In a statement issued Thursday by Chairman Alhaji Saleh Zazzaga, the North-Central APC Forum emphasised that the party must engage in consultations to select credible individuals with proven track records and experience for all NWC positions, including national chairman.
The forum called on Tinubu to lead a “vetting process” that would ensure only persons with the required capacity are elected at the convention to steer the affairs of the APC.
The forum said, “A proper APC national chairman should be somebody whose age accords him the status of a statesman, not an inexperienced fellow who has not acquired the experience to manage the affairs of a political party with so many prominent, distinguished personalities.”
The forum stressed that the APC’s rapid expansion, fueled by opposition governors defecting with their structures, makes competent leadership a must-have.
The statement added, “The North-Central All Progressives Congress Forum is urging President Bola Tinubu to ensure the election of a credible national leadership for the party at the forthcoming national convention.
“We believe this objective is very important because APC is a party with a lot of prominent politicians who have served and are still serving at the highest levels of governance. We believe electing the very best from such a highly distinguished pool of political leaders should be non-negotiable.
“There should be no excuse for not getting it right at the national convention, and that is why we urge Mr President to take charge of the vetting process that will ensure that the right persons emerge as the national officers of our party”.
The statement added that credible leadership of the APC should comprise eminent personalities who have the required qualities in terms of age, past leadership experience, track record, national acceptability, wide and effective network, and resources.
“We urge Mr President to ensure that credible people are elected to occupy all the positions in the National Working Committee, NWC. We don’t want people who will commercialise the party by only looking out for their personal interests,” the statement said.
The forum further stressed that academic qualifications should not be a major criterion in selecting the party’s national chairman, declaring that political sagacity and capacity are more important qualities.
Insisting on competence, the forum said those who failed to deliver their polling units, wards and local governments for the party in previous elections should not be considered.
It also cautioned against the influence of religious sentiment in the selection process.
“Leading APC is not about speaking grammar; it is not about how long your academic qualifications are. It is simply about capacity to deliver, and that is why we are calling on Mr President to make sure that only those with proven track records, who are of the right age and experience, are elected as APC national officers.
“Also, we advise that religious considerations should not come into play in the election of the national chairman of the APC at the national convention. Nigeria, being a secular country, it is imperative that the national chairman of the APC should not be somebody who is known to harbour religious sentiments, who sees himself as representing either Christians, Muslims, or traditional religious adherents.
“Mr President should ensure that the national chairman is not someone who will put religion first. The national chairman should be somebody who is not sectional, who identifies with people of all faiths and ethnicities, who will put the interest of Nigeria above all,” the statement added.
