Former member of the House of Representatives and Senator representing Kano Central, Rufai Hanga, has said he's done with the APC, which would mean his years of political journey with President Muhammadu Buhari from the defunct Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), to the now ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), is over.
While it is unclear why the former APC Chieftain has decided to dump the party he helped formed, it is believed however, that the on-going crisis within the ruling party could have played a huge part in it.
Throw Tinubu's presidential ambition to the mix and the picture begins to become clearer.
It is no longer a secret that the national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), is determined to not only win the party's presidential ticket, but also to win the 2023 presidential election.
Hanga has previously revealed that Tinubu is next in line to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari as President come 2023, regardless whether or not votes are cast.
“This is an open secret. There was an implied agreement. Even in law, there is implied and expressed act. If something is expressed, there are no two ways about it. There was an implied agreement that he would take over. That is why he didn’t back out after the first tenure. If Tinubu knew that he would not benefit, he would have backed out during Buhari’s first tenure. But he knows there was an agreement,” Hanga said in an interview with Daily Trust.
He however, added that the only way to deny Tinubu the Presidency, is for the APC to deny him the party's ticket, a situation he said will not end well for the party.
Hanga who was a prominent member of the APC, certainly knows what's brewing. The fact that he quits the party way before the party holds its primaries in 2022, adds a bit of oil to claims that the current crisis within the APC could be down to Tinubu's determination to win the party ticket, failure which could see him dump the party.
Speaking to The Independent, Hanga said even though he worked to build the APC, he cannot watch the party collapse as a member.
“Yes, I decided to walk away from the APC even though I have not yet openly declared for any other party. But I have left the party and I’m watching them do their thing,” he said.
Hanga aside, there are also other prominent politicians vying for the APC presidential ticket, with non likely to sacrifice for another.
Former Governor of Zamfara State, Senator Ahmed Sani Yarima, has expressed determination to contest in the 2023 presidential election, saying whether or not Tinubu and Buhari have an existing agreement, he won't back down.
"I don’t think Nigeria belongs to any of them and I don’t think anyone in any position can determine what Nigeria should have," he told Daily Trust when told about an existing pact between Buhari and Tinubu.
He continued, "Politics is about election – for people to decide what they want. So it is the majority of the people that will determine who they want.
"If he signed an agreement with Asiwaju, that agreement cannot be implemented even in getting the ticket. It cannot guarantee Asiwaju a ticket.
"For example, the president has announced and the party has decided that our primary is going to be direct – just like we elected Mr. President during the primaries of the last general elections. Will he direct everybody to go and vote for Asiwaju?
"Because, I believe it is going to be a free and fair election, agreement or no agreement is a political statement, but I don’t think that is possible because I don’t think that the Buhari that I know will sign any (such) agreement.
"He knows that he doesn’t have the powers and the authority to hand over power to whomever he so wishes. He said it is going to be free and fair; in fact, he even said it in the open that he doesn’t have any candidate. So, these are just speculations."
The APC will hold its party primaries in the new year. It sure would be interesting to see how it all goes.