2023 presidency: Adamawa PDP advises Bala to Sort out presidential ambition with Atiku, says Senator Gumba

By Mohammed kaka Misau, Bauchi

Ahead of the 2023 presidential election, Bauchi state Governor, Bala Mohammed has been advised to put head together with the former Vice president of Nigeria, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar with a view to having consensus.

The Chairman of the Contact Committee on Presidential Aspiration of Sen. Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed, Senator Adamu Ibrahim Gumba made this known yesterday while submitting their report to the governor at the old banquet hall of the government house Bauchi.

He said that the Peoples Democratic Party stakeholders across 16 northern states of the country have declared their support for the Bauchi state governor to contest for president in the 2023 general election.

Senator Gumba said that Adamawa state PDP stakeholders when contacted, informed his Committee that they have a candidate in person of the former Vice president, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and that the Committee should inform Governor Bala to put head together with him to pave way for one of them who will fly the PDP ticket from the Northeast.

He however said, Jigawa, Kano and Sokoto states showed their support while making additional request that other contestants be allowed to come out to enable the PDP choose from among them.

Senator Gumba informed that Adamawa state while commending senator Bala Mohammed for seeking their opinion informed him that they also have a candidate which is Atiku Abubakar.

“So, the Adamawa leadership of the party advised that Senator Bala Mohammed and the Wazirin Adamawa should sit together so that one can step down for the other. Their feeling is that the Northeast should go into the contest with a single candidate”, the contact committee chairman said.

“I am humbled to lead a delegation of great minds from across the country which was inaugurated on the 15th of August 2021 by His Excellency, the governor. We were found suitable to carry out this assignment by His Excellency the governor with the mandate to move round. It is the report we are presenting that we have gathered here this evening”, he said.

Senator Gumba who said there has been clarion calls from various personalities and organizations on the governor to declare interest in the presidential contest for 2023, noted that information gathered indicated that majority of Nigerian wants Bala to succeed president Muhammadu Buhari.

“In addition to your qualification, your courage, your antecedent as the former minister of the FCT, your role in promoting the doctrine of necessity which saved this country from collapse, your current performance as the executive Governor of Bauchi state made people to bombard you with calls to contest for president”, he added.

The contact committee chairman said that the governor had insisted that he will not accept or reject the calls until he carries out a wider consultation with PDP stakeholders across the country which informed his decision to set up the committee.

“I want to say that in all the states that we visited, the PDP leadership were extremely very happy that you sent a team to consult them without pronouncement. They were happy that you respected them”, Gumba said.

Gumba who said Governor Bala was Commended for consulting before making his aspiration known to the public unlike others who just went to the public domain to announce their ambitions, noted that Bala came up with a very good style that nobody has ever adopted.

“Although our committee was able to cover most of the Northern states only, the general cry was to request that the PDP should let the president come from the Northern part of the country. This is to say we were not able to visit the East, the West or the South-South but the Northern states we visited are of the opinion that the next president of Nigeria should come from the North”, he said.

According to him, “they went further to say that although the Northern part of the country has been recommended but the Northeast and the North central are the most qualified. Narrowing down, they also said the Northeast is the most qualified because it has only produced Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa”.

“So, for this reason, the states visited unanimously supported the courage and style of Senator Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed towards 2923 and they lend their support that he should declare and contest”, he said.

Governor Bala while receiving the report, commended the Committee for carrying out the task, assuring that he will make his decision known in February this year.