Presidential aspirant under the aegis of the Young Progressive Party (YPP), Prof. Kingsley Moghalu has rejected the outcome of the Presidential Aspirants Coming Together (PACT) which picked motivational speaker Fela Durotoye as its consensus presidential candidate for the 2019 general election.
Moghalu in a statement on Thursday said PACT did not produce a true consensus candidate.
I am firmly in the race for President of Nigeria in 2019.
— Kingsley Moghalu (@MoghaluKingsley) August 30, 2018
“I am firmly in the race for President of Nigeria in 2019.
“I wish to inform members of my “To Build A Nation” (TBAN) movement, the Kingsley Moghalu Support Organisation (KIMSO) nationwide, the Kingsley Moghalu Volunteer Force, Youth for Kingsley (Y4K), Women for Kingsley (W4K), Kingsley Moghalu Disciples, the Young Progressive Party (YPP) and my other supporters nationwide and in the diaspora that I am pressing ahead with my plan to contest the 2019 presidential election.
“This is despite the arrangement for a consensus candidate among the young presidential aspirants under the aegis of Presidential Aspirants Coming Together (PACT), which today produced an outcome that has left many Nigerians expressing surprise and disappointment.
“The reasons I have pulled out of the PACT arrangement are as follows: 1. The arrangement had unraveled even before the final selection of the consensus candidate.
“Only seven aspirants participated in the final voting out of the original 18 aspirants, mainly because many of the aspirants had withdrawn from the process.
“Four candidates who were present in the meeting this morning withdrew from the process even while the voting process was ongoing. Therefore, PACT did not produce a true consensus candidate.
“2. Clause 13 of the PACT Memorandum of Understanding asserts the supremacy of the constitutional rights of the aspirants to pursue their political aspirations.
“I therefore have chosen to continue without distraction to pursue my vision in the presidential race for 2019 in the national interest and in deference to the overwhelming outpouring of support for my candidacy from all parts of Nigeria.
“I will remain focused on the objective of providing a competent leadership that will help unite our country and build a nation, wage a decisive war against poverty and unemployment, and restore respect for Nigeria in the society of nations.
“It is my humble and well-considered view that the Office of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria requires competence and experience in these three vital areas. Thank you”, Moghalu said in his statement.
Durotoye emerged as the alternative candidate at the party’s meeting on Thursday, beating the likes of former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Deputy Governor Kingsley Moghalu and Omoyele Sowore, publisher of Sahara Reporters.
The PACT is a coalition formed by some presidential aspirants for next year’s election.
The election was conducted under the supervision of former Education Minister, Dr. Oby Ezekwesili.
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