Nasarawa State governor, Abdullahi Sule, has moved to ease post-primary tensions within the All Progressives Congress (APC), urging aggrieved aspirants who lost out in the party’s recently concluded primaries to accept the outcome in good faith and embrace reconciliation.
Speaking at a meeting with the affected aspirants on Thursday in Lafia, the governor acknowledged that the exercise was not without challenges, adding that he takes responsibility for the shortcomings recorded during the conduct of the direct primaries.
“As the leader of the party, I want to take full responsibility for what happened. I have done everything possible within my reach to ensure that we practiced this direct primaries,” he said.
Governor Sule appealed to dissatisfied aspirants to remain committed to the APC, stressing that internal reconciliation was necessary to strengthen the party ahead of future elections.
He also extended support to political appointees and civil servants who resigned their positions to contest but were unsuccessful at the primaries, directing that they should be reinstated into their previous roles.
He asked those affected to report to the Secretary to the State Government for immediate reabsorption into the civil service, while also pledging to review political appointments to accommodate deserving aspirants from the pool of contestants.
The governor further urged aggrieved members who had left the party over the outcome of the primaries to reconsider their decision, insisting that the APC remains the most stable and viable platform for political engagement in the state.
“We are not chasing them away. Most likely, when they go to other places and things don’t work out, they will want to come back, and we will welcome them. Because outside of here, there is no other place,” he said.
Governor Sule described the direct primary system as one of the most demanding forms of internal democracy, noting that its open nature often produces disagreements compared to indirect primaries.
He added that the post-primary tensions were not peculiar to Nasarawa State, stressing that similar situations are being experienced across the country.
Earlier, the APC State Chairman, Dr. Aliyu Bello, commended the aspirants for attending the reconciliation meeting and urged them to embrace unity, noting that political setbacks are often temporary and should be seen as part of the broader democratic process.