Ahead of the general elections, President Muhammadu Buhari, Presidential Candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC is gaining more ground while his arch rival, Atiku Abubakar of the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP chances are being threatened.
This is as Chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum NGF, Governor Abdulaziz Yari of Zamfara State Tuesday announced that the 36 state governors including those of the PDP and other parties have resolved to support the re-election of President Muhammadu Buhari.
Yari who revealed this at the unveilibg ceremony of Forward with Buhari: Grassroots Mobilizers Foot Soldiers for the reelection of President Buhari in Abuja said the governors’ position was based on President Buhari’s laudable achievements in the last three and half years.
He particularly claimed that the support of the governors was based on the bail out funds given by the President for the payment of several months of salaries owed workers across the country which saved his colleagues from fleeing from their respective States to Abuja to seek refuge out of fear of incurring the wrath of their aggrieved workers.
The Chairman of NGF said, “Mr President you have done something that is unexpected whereby 27 out of 36 governors cannot pay salary, you had to bail out the states or else some of us will have relocated back to Abuja. If he can do this irrespective of party, it is time to pay back. Those that stay with Buhari, even his opponents, know his zero tolerance to corruption.
“It is about three weeks to the election. We need to work harder, we should go back home and gear up to return Mr President Muhammadu Buhari for a second time. You know why governors are backing Buhari? I knew what happened in the past administration and now. The President has given us infrastructure. It has been right to ride behind him. We will do all to support this group”.
Similarly, Lawan Shauibu, APC Deputy National Chairman North disclosed that so far, two PDP governors have given monetary support to Buhari’s second term bid even though he refused to mention the governors at the moment.
According to Shuaibu, “it is unique in the sense that, the sponsors of the campaign group, who no doubt consider themselves among the most critical stakeholders in this important history-making project of returning President Muhammadu Buhari to continue in office in 2019 are members of the Nigeria Governors Forum!
“Your Excellency will be surprised that I did not say Progressives Governors Forum. Yes, it is not a mistake; the Nigeria Governors Forum, led by His Excellency Governor AbdulAzeez Yari Abubakar of Zamfara State.
“The group named itself FORWARD WITH BUHARI as its mandate is to move with the APC Presidential Candidate to the NEXT LEVEL. The main mandate of the group in this campaign Your Exellencies, distinguished ladies and gentlemen, is to create visibility of the campaign on a sustained momentum as well as create awareness and endear the Brand of Buhari/Osinbajo in the hearts of Nigerian Voters.
“They do this through their grass-root mobilizers who are sponsored to engage people at polling unit levels, by consistently reminding the common man of the laudable achievements of the Buhari Administration in the nation’s various sectors that positively touched on the life of not only every ordinary citizen of this country, but, we can say every Nigerian”.
James Kwen, Abuja
