Stakeholders in the All Progressives Congress (APC) from the North-Central zone have endorsed Tanko Al-Makura, former governor of Nasarawa, as their preferred candidate to replace Abdullahi Ganduje as national chairman.
Ganduje resigned suddenly on Friday, June 27, 2025, reigniting calls for the chairmanship to return to the North-Central zone in line with the party’s zoning formula.
Following his exit, Bukar Dalori, the party’s deputy national chairman (north), assumed the role of acting chairman.
In a statement issued on Sunday and signed by Saleh Zazzaga, chairman of the APC North-Central Forum, the group said its decision to back Al-Makura followed wide consultations with stakeholders across the zone.
The statement, titled “Why Al-Makura Deserves to be APC National Chairman”, described the former governor as a loyal party man, political strategist, and a founding member of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), one of the legacy parties that merged to form the APC in 2013.
The forum said: “Among the three legacy parties — ACN, CPC, and ANPP — only the CPC bloc has not produced a national chairman.
“Senator Tanko Al-Makura, a two-term governor and former senator, is a loyal party man who commands the respect of both past and present governors.”
The Forum made reference to Al-Makura’s experience in both the executive and legislative arms of government, describing him as a bridge-builder with deep political roots.
It recalled his voluntary withdrawal from the APC chairmanship race in 2022 to support the consensus arrangement that led to the emergence of Abdullahi Adamu.
Al-Makura, the Forum said, has played key roles in party affairs over the years, including serving as chairman of the Ekiti governorship primary election committee in 2018, the North-East Reconciliation Committee, and a member of the Bisi Akande-led national reconciliation committee in 2020.
Tracing his political journey, the group said Al-Makura served as youth leader in the National Party of Nigeria (NPN) in 1979, was state secretary of the National Republican Convention (NRC) in 1989, and a founding member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in 1999.
He was elected governor under the CPC platform in 2011 and became senator under the APC in 2019.
The Forum said Al-Makura remained loyal to the APC and President Bola Tinubu when some CPC bloc members considered defecting to the opposition earlier this year.
It also described him as an advocate of inclusion and a symbol of resilience, citing his longstanding connection to Nigeria’s disability community as a person living with a disability.
The endorsement came a day after the Forum reiterated its demand that the North-Central be allowed to complete the chairmanship tenure originally zoned to the region.
Abdullahi Adamu, also from Nasarawa, was elected APC chairman in March 2022 but resigned in July 2023 after refusing to back Tinubu’s presidential bid.
“After extensive deliberations, the North-Central APC Forum has resolved to endorse Senator Tanko Al-Makura for the position of APC national chairman.
“This is in continuation of our call for the chairmanship to return to the North-Central zone by the APC’s zoning principles,” the statement added.