A list of All Progressives Congress candidates shortlisted for the ruling party’s presidential primaries holding from June 6-8 in Abuja, has surfaced online.
In the list, Rochas Okorocha, former Imo state governor; Ben Ayade, governor of Cross River state; Tunde Bakare, general overseer of Latter Rain Assembly and Sani Yerima, former Zamfara state governor’ names were missing.
Other names not cleared are Ken Nnamani, former president of the Senate; Ikeobasi Mokelu, former minister of information;
Demeji Bankole, former speaker of the House of Representatives; Ajayi Borroffice, Deputy Senate leader; Felix Nicholas, US-basd pastor and Uju Ken-Ohanenye, the only female aspirant.
John Odigie-Oyegun, chairman of the All APC presidential screening committee had on Friday said his panel cleared 13 presidential aspirants and did not cleared 10.
Oyegun disclosed this when he submitted the report of his committee to Abdullahi Adamu, APC national chairman in Abuja on Friday.
He said all the 23 aspirants met
the basic constitutional qualifications to contest presidential election but those cleared were taken based on their ability to lead, background, experience and understanding of the Nigerian situation.
The former Edo state governor also said the other criteria for clearance of the 13 aspirants include their ideas as to how issues, difficulties and the rest can be addressed and how the country can move forward to begin a critical consideration.
“It is on that basis we made our final shortlist. I don’t want to read the names which I think would leave that to you (chairman) but we have a shortlist which brought the number down to 13.
“We could have cut it a little shorter but we wanted deliberately, the younger elements to surface for them to be seen, for them to be noticed. We would hand them over to the party and it is for the party to decide whom their candidate will be.
Candidates that made the list are; Former Lagos State Governor, Bola Tinubu, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Senate President Ahmad Lawan; Kogi State Governor’, Yahaya Bello, Ekiti State Governor, Kayode Fayemi, Ebonyi State Governor David Umahi and Jigawa State Governor, Mohammed Abubakar-Badaru.
Others include; former minister of transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, Former Niger Delta Affairs Minister, Godswill Akpabio, Emeka Nwajiuba, former minister of state for education; Ogbonnaya Onu, former minister of science techology and innovation; Ibikunle Amosun; former governor of Ogun state and Tein Jack-Rich, President/ Founder of Belemaoil and Belema Aid Foundation.
