The All Progressives Congress (APC) National Chairman, John Odigie-Oyegun and former National Chairman of the defunct All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), Chief Ogbonnaya Onu, have emerged as favourites for the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF).
Also in the race is a retired permanent secretary and former Secretary of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Dr. Hakeem Baba Ahmed.
Competent sources said at the weekend that the party leadership was in a fix whether to zone the position to either the South- East or the South-South, just as some Northern party bigwigs are said to also be rooting for one of their kinsmen as the SGF.
One of the sources said that Odigie-Oyegun had indicated interest in the office and had enlisted the support of party leaders to get the post.
“The national chairman feels that the South- South deserves the position of the SGF and he considers himself as the right person for the job, having served as permanent secretary in the Buhari military regime.
“I can tell you that Oyegun has been lobbying party leadership for the job,” the source said.
It was, however, learnt that Onu has so far enjoyed the backing of some party leaders who were pushing his candidacy in order to ensure equity in the distribution of positions in the party.
According to sources, the choice of Onu was arrived at by the party leadership, given his steadfastness and contribution to the party growth.
“You know there were three legacy parties that fused to become the APC. Already, the Congress for Progressive Congress (CPC) produced General Muhammadu Buhari as president while the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) has produced the vice-president in Prof. Yemi Osinbajo.
“So, only the ANPP has been left out of sharing of sensitive offices. That is why we are supporting Onu for the office,” a member of the APC Board of Trustees (BoT) told our correspondent.
It was, however, learnt that some forces in the party are kicking against the choice of Odigie-Oyegun as the SGF on the strength of age. He is 75 years old and the president-elect is 72 years old.
“We will be sending a wrong signal out of running a gerontocracy. Buhari is 72 and you want to pick an SGF who is 75? The office of SGF is demanding and needs a young man.
“Some of us have drawn the attention of the party leadership to this age issue. Don’t forget that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) made issue out of Buhari’s age in the course of electioneering,” a source said.
Some vested interests in the party are, however, pushing for the former Governor of Anambra State, Senator Chris Ngige, who lost his re-election on April 11, just as the names of Governor Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers and the incumbent Secretary to the Borno State Government (SSG), Ambassador Ahmed Jidda, had initially featured as possible SGF.
The candidature of Amaechi, who served as Director General of the APC Presidential Campaign Organisation, was stepped down because of what a party source described as “his temperamental nature whereas the office of the SGF demands a high level of maturity and level-headedness.”
Jidda was dropped because of “political exigency” and that the North- East, where he is from, is being considered for another top position.
A source said Amaechi is being considered for a ministerial appointment and he may either head the Petroleum Resources Ministry or the Niger Delta Ministry.
A party source told our correspondent that the inability of the South-South and South-East to produce a ranking National Assembly member to occupy the leadership of one of the legislative chambers was one of the reasons that informed the decision to zone the SGF to either of the zones.
He stated that Buhari was confused over who to pick as SGF between Onu and Ahmed.
The source further claimed that Buhari has much respect and regard for Onu, but there is pressure on him to consider Ahmed since Jonathan had someone from the South-East as SGF.
He said so many people from the North believe that somebody from the North should be appointed as the SGF now.
The source also said a former SGF, Babagana Kingibe, was being considered to be Buhari’s chief of staff to checkmate strong elements in the Buhari administration.
Kingibe, with a background in intelligence gathering, was appointed SGF by the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua and was later sacked by the administration on the grounds of inordinate ambitions.
According to the source, the inclusion of Kingibe as a member of the 13-member APC transition committee was strategic as “Kingibe is a seasoned administrator, a technocrat, a politician and an intelligent expert.
“Buhari would rely much on his wealth of experience to do most of the work he has to do and his opinion would be highly respected in the circle of government functionaries.
“As a Chief of Staff to Buhari, the president would be rest assured that his office would command the desired respect.”
The source stated that former President Olusegun Obasanjo chose as his chief of staff someone with security background and Yar’Adua inherited that.
He stated that one of the undoings of President Goodluck Jonathan was the first choice of his Chief of Staff, Mike Ogiadomhe, a former deputy governor of Edo State.
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