As the 2023 presidential election draws closer, the All Progressives Congress APC has already started the process of ensuring that they produce a sellable candidate in 2023 that will help them to stay in power. One of the ways the party is going about it is by ensuring that they have a National Working Committee NWC that will put things in a place for a smooth ride into 2023. It should be recalled that on the 25th of March, the APC held its long-awaited national convention. Abdullahi Adamu who was endorsed and anointed by President Muhammadu Buhari emerged as the National Chairman of the party.

Just recently, National Daily reports that the Chairman, All Progressives Congress Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee, Governor Mai Mala Buni, on Wednesday, formally handed over the party’s leadership to the newly elected chairman, Senator Abdullahi Adamu. It should be recalled that before the last Saturday’s APC National Convention, Buni, who is the Yobe State Governor, had been saddled with the responsibility of piloting affairs of the party as caretaker chairman for more than 20 months.

It should be recalled that the first substantive chairman of the APC, John Oyegun was forced out of the party after falling out with Bola Tinubu over the governorship primaries that produced Rotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State. Although he stayed till the end of his tenure in 2018, he could not seek re-election and was subsequently replaced by Adams Oshiomhole. Comrade Adams Oshimhole had a turbulent time as the Chairman of the Party. In the 2019 general election, he lost 4 states to the PDP, Oyo, Adamawa, Bauchi, and Zamfara State. The court barred the APC from contesting in Rivers State. Now Adamu has taken over, there are two likely challenges he might face in the cause of his chairmanship.

First, Abdullahi Adamu may have to encounter the challenge of dealing with the different factions in the party. It should be recalled that before the APC’s national convention, the party had different factions in several of its states as a result of aggrieved members who were not satisfied with court judgments. States like Osun, Rivers, Kano, Sokoto, etc are having a series of crises. This could pose a serious problem for Adamu to successfully reconcile aggrieved party members.

Secondly, no doubt, the contest for 2023 has already started in earnest. All eyes will be on Abdullahi Adamu to see how he will be able to carry everyone along and also ensure that the party retains power in the 2023 general election, ensuring that no APC state would be lost to the PDP. This of course is a difficult task ahead of him. If he is not able to handle these two challenges the APC may eventually lose the 2023 general election to the PDP.