North West Caucus Makes High Demands from Tinubu
By Collins Mbakwe
The North West caucus of the All Progressives Congress (APC) had reportedly struck a deal with the party’s presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu, over the sharing of juicy positions if it retains power in 2023.
Naija News learned that the APC caucus had demanded the running mate slot just before Tinubu announced Senator Kashim Shettima from the North-East.
The caucus allegedly also asked for the positions of secretary to the government of the federation, finance, works, agriculture, Federal Capital Territory, and interior minister
According to Daily Sun, the caucus wants the positions in exchange for its support to win the 2023 presidential elections.
It was gathered that an outspoken governor from the zone tabled the demands.
They also asked for other key political appointments, including the office of the national security adviser and the headships of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA); Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA); Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL); Bank of Agriculture (BoA); Bank of Industry (BoI); Department of State Services (DSS), and Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN).
In the presentation of a document detailing their demands, the caucus noted that these critical positions should be reserved for the zone following their importance to Tinubu’s electoral victory.
The APC North West caucus also demanded that the Tinubu administration address security issues decisively, especially banditry and kidnapping in the region.
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They tasked the incoming APC administration to focus on agriculture and the development of brownfield industry to support value chain creation; focus on infrastructure “as it is currently being done in the South West,” and leverage the region’s opportunity cost in mining, agriculture, green and renewable energy for economic diversification.
According to the document, which detailed the historical analysis of the region to the party’s victory at presidential polls, the leaders noted that the North West zone is the game changer for the APC in 2023.
Comparing the share of votes across the six geo-political zones, the North West caucus stated that the region’s APC share of votes represented 46 per cent and 39 per cent of the total APC votes in 2019 and 2015, respectively.
“The North West contributed to the electoral victory of the APC in 2015 and 2019 presidential elections by winning all seven states – Kebbi, Zamfara, Sokoto, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, and Jigawa
“Indicative of its voting contributions in recent national elections, five out of every ten votes for the APC in 2015 came from the North West, while four out of every ten votes for the party in 2019 came from the region,” the document showed according to Daily Sun.
