by Segun Tomori

Oshiomhole, having grew up in Kaduna speaks hausa language fluently and is imbued with a oratory and persuasive skills that will effectively complement the taciturn General. Being from the same South-south zone with President Jonathan will also split the votes of the region in favour of the APC.

When I set out, last Wednesday morning to the venue of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential primaries, I never expected I was going for a 28 hour hiatus. It was however an eventful experience that was worth the wait.

I saw a transparent and credible process right from the accreditation till the voting proper. You would think you were attending a democratic party primaries in the United States, that was the finesse the APC delivered with its command performance. It was therefore no surprise that Ex- Vice President, Atiku Abubakar took to twitter to congratulate Gen. Muhammadu Buhari even when his vote count was still on-going. Even a blind man could attest to the integrity of the process, doing otherwise would have been counter-productive.

The primaries has since become the talk of the town. The APC proved skeptics wrong, the camaraderie exhibited by defeated aspirants disappointed naysayers and those who had predicted the crumbling of the party after the primaries. The aspirants who through their fierce battle for the ticket raised the bar of internal democracy, heartily congratulated the winner. The APC revved up its image and seized the momentum reminiscent of the euphoria that greeted its birth if not much stronger. The high-point of the convention was the acceptance speech of Gen. Buhari. He spoke not as a Presidential nominee, but as a President-elect. The tone of his speech was stern, serious and had all the trappings of a President ready to swing into action. His address resonated across the convention ground and permeated through every home across Nigeria watching via their TV sets. Buhari delivered a speech that brought back hope in the mold of late MKO Abiola’s campaign and inspired the citizens that a symbol of their struggle to remove a clueless government has emerged. I listened with euphoric gaze on the General as I perceived the berth of a new dawn in Nigeria.

The APC must however not give in to complacency. The choice of a Vice-President will go a long way in either sustaining the momentum or diminishing it. The candidate that fits the bill should be one that has national appeal, a track record of performance, an astute mobiliser of men and possess at least a modest level of oratory prowess. Gov. Fashola would have being the best man for the job but pairing him,a muslim, with Buhari might hurt the campaign and give vent to the alleged islamic agenda propaganda of the PDP. Another man that comes to mind is Gov. Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State. He comes across as a man with a heart of steel that fought god-fathers to a standstill in Edo State. His days as Nigeria Labour Congress(NLC) President saw the transformation of the labour movement into an effective pressure group. He led it to become an irrepressible human rights advocacy group and the defender of the common man. He remains immensely popular across Nigeria on account of his labour battles. His exemplary performance as Governor has also endeared him to the hearts of a vast segment of the Nigerian populace.

Oshiomhole, having grew up in Kaduna speaks hausa language fluently and is imbued with a oratory and persuasive skills that will effectively complement the taciturn General. Being from the same South-south zone with President Jonathan will also split the votes of the region in favour of the APC. This is not the time to gamble with a green-horn on the alter of personal or primordial considerations. The time of the campaigns, barely 2 months, is limited to start bolstering the image of an unknown candidate. Oshiomhole, already a house-hold name will complement the ticket and ensure that the Buhari campaign hits the ground running! While some people believe Rotimi Amaechi, Governor of Rivers State should be considered, I doubt if he has that national appeal and the immense goodwill an Oshiomhole will be bringing to the ticket from the labour movement across Nigeria. Some people also detest some utterances of Amaechi which they think is sometimes unguarded and uncouth.

While we wait with bated breath on who will clinch the APC Vice-Presidential nominee, we can only hope that the party will put the interest of the country above other considerations. The emergence of Buhari has raised hopes of Nigerians and the transparent process that led to it has won the APC more converts. It can only sustain the momentum and build on it with a Vice-Presidential candidate that will make the ticket competitive. A lot of time is needed to run a campaign that will inspire the people, the timing is however short, so APC has to hit the ground running with a winning team. On Buhari/Oshiomhole ticket, I Stand!

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Op-ed pieces and contributions are the opinions of the writers only and do not represent the opinions of Y!/YNaija.

Op-Ed Editor