February 19, (THEWILL) – The Spokesperson of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council (PCC), Festus Keyamo, has ruled out speculations of a run-off Presidential election.
Speaking on Sunday, in a chat with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Keyamo, who doubles as Minister of State for Labour and Employment, said he was confident that the APC presidential candidate, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, would get the highest votes and the spread required by the Constitution for him to win on the first ballot without a need for a run-off election.
“To be honest with you, two parties can easily make the 25 per cent in 24 states and that is the APC and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). They have this spread.
“So, let’s be honest about that. Yes, they have the spread, because they have been parties that have been long in the trench and they have structures everywhere.
“APC is more likely to make that 25 per cent, PDP less likely, but possible. Labour Party (LP), it is almost impossible. It is not a comical matter, it is a very factual matter. Factual because it’s a party that I’ve not spent enough time on.
“The whole praise for the LP and I praise them too is that they have done a lot of work within a short time,” he said.
Keyamo commended the LP for its relatively large followership saying, however, it was not a party to beat in the 2023 general election.
“Demographically, of course, the LP votes are concentrated only in a part of this country and that was seen during the rallies here and there, even in terms of the proper polls that have been conducted.
“For me, I’ve said this before, it’s not a matter of arrogance, that I can bet anything precious to me, LP cannot win.
“We know the way Nigeria is configured, that is why I said it’s difficult to have a run-off,” he said.
Keyamo said that APC doesn’t see the LP as a threat in the 2023 election, as it was not capable of taking over any of the States under its control, saying however, that the party was a bigger threat to the PDP, especially in the South-East
“LP is projected to take six states away from the PDP. The whole of eastern states. Most likely they will come to the South-South and take one or two away from PDP,” he added.
Speaking on the crisis in the main opposition party, Keyamo said it was unfortunate that the PDP could not keep its house in order.
“I am sure you can see how swiftly Tinubu put his house together after the primaries. Of course, if the APC had the same different camps and different voices after the primaries, but little by little Tinubu carefully blended everybody, making sure the house was tight.
“Even if they are decent now, you can see that they’re not speaking out, unlike our brothers on the other side.
“Tinubu has been able to manage these issues but the other side just went haywire and it also shows the ability of opposition party candidates to unite his house together.
“The G-5 governors, to me, is an indication that the PDP cannot manage its affairs and so they cannot manage the affairs of Nigeria.
“For us, it is politics. We are glad, some of them are working for us. We are glad you saw what happened in Oyo State, and what happened in Rivers. Without saying anything it was clear the direction the votes are going and that is a plus for us.
“Don’t forget those were the states we lost. We lost Oyo in 2019. It was the only South West State we lost. They are the two critical states we lost.
“Even looking at between 2019 and 2021 and 2023 now, the factors that have changed in the polity, the factors are more in our favour.
“Since 2019, PDP lost three Governors to us – Zamfara, Ebonyi and Cross River. Who did we lose to them?’
“Our billboards are now everywhere in Port Harcourt to the glory of God Almighty. So people should get used to seeing Tinubu taking the oath of office on May 29,” he said.
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