Umar Ganduje, Chairman of APC, resigned his position last week, citing health challenges. Ganduje’s resignation came to many Nigerians as surprise. On 25th February this year, after 18 months without NEC meeting and following barrage of criticisms from APC stakeholders notably Salihu Lukman, Nasir el-Rufai and Kayode Fayemi, Ganduje convened a NEC meeting in which the Progressives Governors’ Forum chairman,Hope Uzodimma, saved his head through vote of confidence on the Ganduje ‘s leadership. Barely five months after the NEC meeting,in what seemed to be another political permutations, Ganduje had to relinquish his appointment to pave the way for the emergence of deputy vice chairman North,Ali Dolari to take the position in acting capacity pending the national convention scheduled for November,2025. In 2023, after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had won the election, Abdullahi Adamu who was the national chairman had to resign.
The former National chairman who hails from North -central is believed to have endorsed Ahmed Lawan, then Senate President as the consensus candidate for 2023 Presidential election. Ganduje is one of the top four northern governors who supported Tinubu in 2023.The other three are former governors of Zamfara,Jigawa and Kaduna States. It is only El-Rufai who did not feature in Tinubu ‘s administration. When Ganduje was appointed as the national chairman, despite the baggage he was carrying, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu looked the other way and allowed him to emerge. APC under Ganduje won many off cycle elections and brought several governors and some members of national assembly to its fold through cross-carpeting. But political watchers are yet to come to terms with the reason behind Ganduje’s sudden resignation.