Northern Elders Set-up Committee To Seek Consensus Presidential Candidate

Taking measures to produce a consensus presidential candidate for the 2019 elections, some elders of the north have also constituted some committees to find solutions to the challenges facing the region.

A committee is to be set up to search and present a consensus candidate for the 2019 presidential election.

The meeting was president over by leader of the Northern Elders Forum, Alhaji Tanko Yakassai, on Saturday in Abuja.

The select elders discussed other strategies for reaching an accord and the adoption of the consensus candidate.

According to Punch, others at the meeting were a former National Chairman of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Dr. Bello Mohammed; a former Deputy Senate President, Sen. Ibrahim Mantu, and Senator Paul Zannan.

Prof. Ango Abdullahi spokesperson of the Northern Elders Forum
Prof. Ango Abdullahi spokesperson of the Northern Elders Forum
Others are a former governor of Niger State, Dr. Babangida Aliyu; Senator Bala Mande; Senator Solomon Ewuga; a former Vice-Chancellor of the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Prof. Ango Abdullahi; a former governor of Sokoto State, Alhaji Attahiru Bafarawa; a prominent lawyer, Prof. Awwal Yadudu, and Alhaji Bala Mohammed.

“Our main preoccupation is how to unite the North to relate better with the rest of Nigeria on a common ground.

“We are a political group but non-partisan (almost) all political parties were here, we are fighting for unity of the country we are not having anybody in mind, we want to have a common purpose,” Yakassai said.

Mohammed, a former Minister of Defence, said the forum was convened “after due consideration of the current political situation in the country.”

A communiqué issued at the end of the meeting, reveals that they also set up a committee to look at the desirability or otherwise of the restructuring of Nigeria.

They said this was to commemorate the attainment of self-government of the Northern region in 1959.

Source: Punch