The verdict The All Progressives Congress has set new dates for its presidential primary election.
According to a source, the exercise will now take place on June 6 and 7, 2022.
The APC had previously scheduled the primary for May 29th – 30th, 2022.
However, less than 48 hours before the previously set date, the Senator Abdullahi Adamu-led National Working Committee (NWC) has yet to form convention planning committees or organize screening for all presidential aspirants who purchased and returned their expression of interest and nomination forms.
The latest development comes just hours after the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) bowed to political party pressure and extended the deadline for conducting primary elections by six days.
Mr Festus Okoye, INEC National Electoral Commissioner for Information and Voter Education, stated that the decision was made following a meeting with the 18 registered political parties on Friday in Abuja under the auspices of the Inter-Party Advisory Council IPAC.
IPAC had previously requested a two-month extension from the June 3 deadline, which the commission denied.
Okoye stated that the extension gives parties time to compile a list of their nominated candidates’ names and personal information before uploading it to the INEC portal.
Sources said on Thursday that the APC presidential primary may not take place because President Muhammadu Buhari has left the country to attend the African Union Extraordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea.
“Aspirants are saying Buhari’s departure which had been planned will cause more dysfunctionality considering that till now, no known screening is going on.
“They are confused, they don’t even know when they will be screened nor the mode of primary, the National Chairman of the APC, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, held a meeting with President Buhari yesterday but we don’t know the outcome yet. We aren’t even sure maybe the primary will hold as scheduled, no screening three days to the exercise,” a source had said.
