Ahmed Yerima, former
governor of Zamfara, says he was asked to drop his presidential ambition for
Muhammadu Buhari in the buildup to the 2007 elections.
According to Yerima, ex-president Olusegun Obasanjo begged
Ibrahim Babangida, a former military president, to persuade him against running
for the election.
Yerima spoke on Friday during a Channels Television’s programme titled
“Inside Sources”, which was hosted by Laolu Akande, the former spokesperson of
ex-Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo.
BACKGROUND
Yerima was the governor of Zamfara state from 1999 to 2007.
He was one of the presidential hopefuls who sought the ticket of the defunct
All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) ahead of the 2007 elections.
In December 2006, during the ANPP national convention,
Yerima climbed the podium and announced that he had stepped down for Buhari,
who was also running for the position.
Buhari was declared the winner of the ANPP presidential
primary.
On the other hand, the late Umaru Musa Yar’Adua got the
presidential ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Yar’Adua was the anointed candidate of Obasanjo, who at the
time was completing his two-term tenure in 2007.
Yar’Adua won the 2007 presidential election, while Buhari
came second.
‘WHY I STEPPED DOWN
FOR BUHARI’
Speaking during the interview, Yerima said before the ANPP’s
national convention, the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) agreed that Buhari
should become the sole presidential candidate of the north and that other
contestants in the region should step down.
The former governor said he was approached by the forum to
step down, adding that he told them that he would think about it.
Yerima said he dropped his ambition after Babangida
requested him to step down for Buhari.
“President Obasanjo made sure that he brought General
Ibrahim Babangida, who is still alive, and begged him for me to step down. He
was in PDP and I was in ANPP,” he said.
He said Obasanjo did not want him to contest against
Yar’Adua, his anointed candidate, because he knew that the ANPP primary
election would be won by him.
“At that time, the security report showed him, according to
my information, that I had all the delegates in my hand, except Kano and
Katsina, I left for Buhari, at that time,” he said.
“I had all the state
chairmen of ANPP of all 36 states and Abuja supporting me. The government knew
that if I got the ticket, it was going to be a very difficult task for PDP to
win for Yar’Adua to become president.
“Then, Obasanjo sent an aircraft to bring IBB and requested
him to please talk to me so I can step down for Yar’Adua.
“Babangida sent the late Engineer Abdulkadir Kure, the
former governor of Niger state, and even the former governor of Sokoto State,
Attahiru Bafarawa, they were sent to come to me and to beg me to step down,”
Yerima said.
Asked if Buhari was aware of the underground political
moves, the former governor responded in affirmation.
“They (referring to Kure and Bafarawa) came to me in the
night after 8 o’clock, and after greetings, I asked my people to go out, and
they said IBB sent them to me. I said yes, he said you were coming,” he
recalled.
“They said, ‘The only favour he wants you to do for him is
to step down for Buhari tomorrow; the convention is tomorrow.’ I said, ‘Oh my
God! Please tell him I’ve accepted; I’ve committed myself to do the favour for
him.
“They said, ‘No, he said whatever your answer is, we should
call him and you will tell him by yourself.’ And they called IBB and I told
him, ‘Sir, tomorrow I will step down for Buhari.’
“Immediately they left, I went to the national chairman,
Chief Ume-Ezeoke, and I told him that tomorrow I was going to step down for
Buhari.”
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