Report indicates that the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, the camp of President Muhammadu Buhari, has been torn apart over the defection move of some key party Leaders.
They are: Senate President, Bukola Saraki; House of Representatives Speaker, Yakubu Dogara; Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal; ex-Governor Musa Rabiu Kwankwaso; ex-Governor Aliyu Wammako; ex-Governor Danjuma Goje; ex-Governor Ahmed Sani Yerima, among others.
Authoritative party sources disclosed that the Leaders are yet to endorse Buhari for a second term, because they are weighing their own options on the way forward.
A few of them have a strong political relationship with ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo, who wrote a toxic letter to the President, last week.
Obasanjo had called for the formation of what he called the ‘Third Force’, to wrestle power from the APC in 2019.
Prominent politicians across party divide are said to be already lining up to join the ‘Third Force’.
The presidency is worried by what sources termed the “silence and cold attitude” of these Leaders to Buhari’s second term bid.
Although, some of the Leaders believe it is too early now to start politicking, some APC Leaders and Buhari’s strategists are suspicious of such position.
The closeness of some of them to ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo, has compounded the fears of those in Buhari’s camp.
It was learnt that a few of them, including some APC Senators and Members of the House of Representatives, have practically abandoned the party.
According to findings, the development accounted for the series of dinners being organised by the President to interact with these Leaders, to gauge their mood and indirectly seek their support.
The President has already dined with Senators and Members of the House of Representatives. The President also lobbied some senators and house of representatives members with money and promises of returning them.
But some other top Senators are hell bent on the president not running for a second term, they said the President is old and has tried in his own capacity to rule the country well so he needs to go and rest so that young blood will run the country well.
Some senators are reading the body language of former Obasanjo and other leader who they believe have secretly endorsed Governor of sokoto state Tambuwal to replace President buhari and are ready to deploy machineries for to win the 2019 elections .
