Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, Dr. Bukola Saraki and two other presidential aspirants on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party from the North on Sunday said the committee saddled with the responsibility of producing a consensus candidate among them was still meeting.



Other members of the group are a former military dictator, Gen. Ibrahim Babangida (retd.) and a former National Security Adviser, Gen. Aliyu Gusau (retd.).



They said in a joint statement by their directors of campaign that there was no iota of truth in newspaper reports that the Mallam Adamu Ciroma-led committee was having problems arriving at who to pick among them.



Those who signed the statement are Udenta O. Udenta, Chris Mammah, Chief Dr. Raymond Dokpesi and Sen. Ben Obi.



They claimed the intention of the reports was to create disharmony among the various campaign organisations and distract the Committee charged with the task of selecting a consensus presidential candidate from discharging its responsibility.



They said, “The committee charged with the onerous duty of selecting and adopting a consensus candidate is working diligently and assiduously to complete its assignment.



“We collectively reiterate that the committee enjoys the confidence and support of the four presidential aspirants and their various campaign organisations as well as the confidence and support of well meaning Nigerians nation-wide!



“The four presidential aspirants who we represent are irrevocably and irreversibly committed to the process that will throw up a single presidential candidate and are fully briefed by the committee on the progress of its task.



They said all the aspirants would not only accept the decision reached by the committee but would also collectively work towards the emergence of the PDP flag bearer.



“It is necessary that we emphasize that the philosophy behind the idea of a consensus candidate is designed to reinforce the key ingredients of our national unity and stability, democratic governance and the right of our citizenry to freely express their preferred choice,” they added.



Meanwhile, former military Head of State, Ibrahim Babangida, on Sunday said that the Peoples Democratic Party’s consensus candidate of the North would emerge very soon.



According to Babangida, who spoke at the Presidential Wing of the Murtala Mohammed Airport in Lagos the four Northern candidates contesting under the platform of the PDP had agreed to go by the decision of a committee of northern elders set up to select a consensus candidate.



He said, “The four of us agreed that for best sign of statesmanship, we will support whoever comes up. And we have those who have earned unimpeachable integrity, those you call the committee of wise men or committee of elders, to choose a candidate for us.



“They (the committee members) are as far I am concerned, have served this country than everyone of us; they are not corrupt, have unimpeachable integrity, and any other person will go by their sound judgement of whatever they come out with because of who they are.”



Babangida said that he would be ready to step down if the decision of the committee failed to favour him.



The former military leader, who argued that the Northern aspirants from PDP were not candidates of the North but Nigeria, said the decision followed PDP’s failure to honour the zoning arrangement.



According to him, “The party signed that political office of president should be zoned, and all we are asking for is a simple thing-let the party’s rule and regulations be followed, where it is not followed then you go through the same process of convention and jettison that rule.”



Babangida stressed that zoning had been on since 1979, and argued that it had helped to stabilise the nation’s polity.



He said the idea of zoning came because parties wanted to attract more people to join them.



Also, Vice President Atiku Abubakar has said he fully supports ongoing move by northern leaders to have a consensus candidate on the platform of the PDP in the 2011 presidential election.



Atiku who was addressing party supporters and delegates in Kaduna said having a single candidate from the region would demonstrate their seriousness. ”I am not against consensus candidate. I am fully in support of it. What I don‘t like are such undemocratic terminologies as ”automatic ticket”, ”voting by acclamation”, ”right of first refusal” and ”caucus voting”, Atiku said.

http://www.punchng.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art201010183114362

Babangida ,Adamu Ciroma , Aliyu Gusau , Atiku and Bukola saraki should find somewhere to hide their face . Nigerians are tired of seeing your names that you are contesting . I dont even know what EFCC is doing , ’cos these were some of leaders that spoiled this great nation. If you guys think you have gathered the whole wealth in this world and you can do and on do, you are deceiving yourselves , inshal allah you will not go unpunished . The wrath of God shall descend on you all. You UNSHAMEFUL