Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State has convened a meeting of All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship aspirants in Abuja, declaring his commitment to keeping the party united and ensuring a peaceful primary election process ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The meeting, held at the Governors Lodge in Abuja on Sunday, shortly after the APC National Convention, brought together all declared governorship aspirants alongside former governors Senators Abdullahi Adamu and Umaru Tanko Al-makura.
Present Deputy Governor, Dr. Emmanuel Akabe, Speaker, Nasarawa State House of Assemby, Rt. Hon. Danladi Jatau and former deputy governor, Chief Silas Ali Agara, were also in attendance.
Speaking to the aspirants, Governor Sule commended their role in the party’s e-registration exercise, saying Nasarawa State ranked among the top 12 states in the federation by registration numbers despite its relatively small population.
The Governor also praised their contributions to the success of congresses at the ward, local government, zonal and state levels, which he said were widely regarded as among the most peaceful in the state’s recent political history.
He told the aspirants that no single person among them was strong enough to win an election without the support of the others, drawing from his experience during the 2019 governorship election, in which aspirants who lost at the primaries rallied behind the eventual candidate, as the model for how the party must conduct itself going into 2027.
On the primary process, Governor Sule announced that the choice between a direct primary and a consensus arrangement would be made collectively by the aspirants and not by him alone, stressing that the party in the state would decide together, and that he would accept whatever method was agreed upon.
Regarding zoning, the Governor reaffirmed a position he said he had stated publicly more than six months earlier, describing the practice as a tradition that has guided political succession in Nasarawa State since 2007.
He traced that tradition through the tenures of former governors Adamu and Al-makura, acknowledging that he himself benefited from it.
While indicating a preference for a candidate from a particular zone, he stated clearly that aspirants from other zones remained free to contest.
Governor Sule also addressed the absence of some aspirants from the original invitation list, explaining that their names were not captured because they had not formally registered their interest with the party.
He personally extended the invitation to those individuals, saying the spirit of inclusion required that no one be shut out of the conversation.
The Governor reminded those present of the full range of elective positions available to the party in 2027, including three senatorial seats, five federal constituency seats and 24 state assembly seats, and urged aspirants who may not succeed at the governorship level to channel their efforts into those contests.
He closed with a strong appeal against bitterness and open conflict among the aspirants, warning that division within the party would ultimately hurt Nasarawa State more than any individual.
He expressed no personal grievance against any aspirant and said his sole interest was in ensuring the party wins across the board in 2027.
“We are going to start conducting the primaries. Luckily, the primaries have been reduced now to just two options. In the past, we had three options. We have the consensus, we have the direct and the indirect, and I’m a product of indirect. Today, indirect has been taken out of the Electoral Act, so we now have direct and consensus.
“To show you my sincerity, you will decide which one we will do. I will not decide. We will collectively as a party decide which one we are going to do, consensus or direct, whichever way I’m in for it. I don’t have a problem with that,” he stated
Governor Sule however pointed out that in as much as he is going to be transparent and sincere while going through the process of the primary election, that would not preclude him from identifying his prefered zone and aspirant.
“This the beginning of showing you how transparent and sincere I am, as far as this is concerned. That will not stop me from saying this is the zone I prefer. Those who want to listen to me can follow. Those who don’t want to listen can do the otherwise,” he said.