.
In its bid to dislodge President Goodluck
Jonathan in 2015, the All Progressives Congress, APC, is considering fielding
Chief Audu Ogbeh, former national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party,
PDP, as its presidential candidate.
Ogbeh, according to sources in the party, will
have Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos State as running mate. The party is
considering this following realization that one of its presidential aspirants,
General Mohammadu Buhari, is not a popular figure outside of the North.
Buhari, who ran for the presidency in 2003, 2007
and 2011, is widely viewed as honest but considered a religious bigot and an
ethnic irredentist. The allegations of bigotry and irredentism have regularly
being used by opponents to tar him in the South.
The APC is desirous of fielding a Christian
presidential candidate hence it is looking in the direction of Ogbeh, who is a
Christian from Benue State. It is thought that a non-Muslim will appeal to many
segments of the North, which for religious reasons, voted for Jonathan in 2011.
However, party sources said, the vitality of
Ogbeh's candidacy is hugely dependent on Buhari. "If Buhari agrees to take
Ogbeh all around the North and sell him to the masses, the party has a chance
of success. If he does not give his approval, there will be no chance for APC
in the core-North. Buhari is a big factor in the North and the APC will need
him to sell Ogbeh in that section of the country," explained a source
Globalvillage extra
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