Former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, has disclosed that the 2013 merger involving the Action Congress of Nigeria, the new Peoples Democratic Party and other stakeholders contributed 3.2 million votes to aid ex-President Muhammadu Buhari’s victory.
Delivering a lecture on Buhari’s role in national development, during the public presentation of “According to the President: Lessons from a Presidential Spokesman’s Experience,” a book authored by former presidential spokesperson, Garba Shehu, in Abuja, on Wednesday, Mustapha said the merger yielded additional 3.2 million votes to Buhari’s 12.2 million votes to secure victory over then-incumbent President Goodluck Jonathan in 2015.
At the book presentation were former Vice Presidents, Yemi Osinbajo and Atiku Abubakar, Chief of Staff to former President Muhammadu Buhari, Prof Ibrahim Gambari, former Governors Kayode Fayemi (Ekiti), Nasir El-Rufai (Kaduna), former ministers, Lai Mohammed (Information), Isa Ali Pantami (Communication and Digital Economy), Sadiya Umar Farouq (Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development), Solomon Dalung (Youth and Sport),
While Buhari led the defunct Congress for Progressive Change, Bola Tinubu led the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria.
Also, Atiku, alongside others from the Peoples Democratic Party and those from the All Nigeria Peoples Party merged to form the All Progressives Congress.
Other prominent figures in the coalition are former Senate President, Bukola Saraki, former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, former Kano State Governor, Rabiu Kwankwaso, former Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha, Vice President Kashim Shettima, among others.
At the APC presidential primary held in Lagos, Buhari defeated Atiku, Okorocha, Kwankwaso and others to emerge as the party’s candidate.
Ahead of the 2023 election, Tinubu, then a presidential aspirant, had recalled how he supported Buhari’s 2015 victory, a comment that sparked mixed reactions among their respective supporters.
Clarifying the events, Mustapha, a former member of the defunct ACN, stressed the importance of recognising Buhari’s role in reshaping Nigeria’s political landscape.
He stated, “In early 2013, as the leader of the Congress for Progressive Change, President Buhari, formally requested and supported the creation of the CPC merger committee, part of a broader coalition-building process that brought together the ACN—the party under which I served as the Deputy National Chairman at that time.
“We also had our own transition merger committee, the ANPP, and a fraction of others. And elements of the ruling party, through the breakaway New PDP group, his endorsement and participation, along with other party leaders such as President Bola Tinubu and Senator Ali Modu Sheriff, who was the chairman of the Board of Trustees of the ANPP lent credence, credibility, and direction to the merger, helping to unify it.
“This led to significant participation under the banner of the All Progressives Congress. That coalition built and paved the way for the first democratic defeat of an incumbent ruling party in Nigeria’s history. President Buhari’s integrity, national stature, and disciplined messaging were central to that breakthrough.
“Not only that, for us in the ACN, I do not intend to stir any controversy, but I will make bold to state this—that the merger in 2013 was midwife to present a Buhari or create a Buhari Presidency.”
Mustapha stated that choosing Buhari as the presidential candidate in 2015 was the most practical and strategic decision for the APC.
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