Support organizations working for several of the party's presidential aspirants have rejected the consultation between former President Goodluck Jonathan and some APC leaders in order for Jonathan to emerge as the presidential candidate.
In separate interviews with The PUNCH, groups loyal to the party's presidential hopefuls, notably Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, the APC National Leader and former Lagos State Governor, and Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, denied the consensus scheme for the ex-President.
It was also learned that individuals behind the project, as well as several members of the party's National Working Committee, were concerned that it would fail.
Despite the fact that the plan had been announced, it was learned that opposition to it was already growing among members.
Other members of the party in the presidential contest include Yahaya Bello, the governor of Kogi State; Rotimi Amaechi, the Minister of Transportation; and Dave Umahi, the governor of Ebonyi State.
The PUNCH reported on Saturday that Jonathan had told some APC leaders that he would only run for president if the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari, directly endorsed him (retd.).
The PUNCH learned of the information shortly after Jonathan's posters swamped the APC's national secretariat and some youth organizations invaded Jonathan's office in Abuja's Maitama neighborhood, urging him to run for President.
In his response, the former President told demonstrators that he couldn't tell for sure whether or not he would declare, but merely warned his followers to "look out."
The PUNCH later learned from top APC sources that some APC leaders and some elements in the Presidency had devised a scheme to grant Jonathan's request.
All presidential aspirants were aware of the plot to bring Jonathan in as the consensus candidate, according to a member of the APC National Executive Committee who spoke to one of our correspondents.
Members of the Presidency cabal working on the proposal, he claims, were perplexed because they didn't know if it would succeed.
He added that they began working on the idea more than a year ago, but when they ran into difficulties, they attempted to adopt Godwin Emefiele, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria.
When they saw Emefiele's plan might not succeed, the NEC member stated, they went back to the Jonathan arrangement.
"I can tell you they're up against a tough task in terms of Jonathan," the party's leader said. Jonathan's body language, though, indicates that he is interested. His supporters in the APC, on the other hand, are unsure how to clean up Jonathan's public image, which they presented as inept and dumb in 2015.
"Another difficult challenge the party may confront is persuading other aspirants to stand down, like as Tinubu, Osinbajo, Amaechi, Umahi, and Bello." Many members are dissatisfied with the plot and are ready to derail it."
Felix Morka, the APC National Publicity Secretary, did not respond to a text message sent to his mobile phone or a call from one of our correspondents when contacted for a statement from the party.
The presidential candidates, according to the PUNCH, were waiting for Jonathan's backers to reveal their proposal, which they vowed to oppose.
Jonathan is rejected by the Osinbajo camp, but the group is hopeful that a consensus candidate would emerge.
Femi Adeleye, the leader of the Osinbajo Grassroots Organisation in Ekiti State, stated on Sunday that the party could not grant Jonathan a waiver to run for president as a consensus candidate because there were already competent and capable candidates.
The party would adopt Osinbajo if it considered a consensus solution, according to Adeleye, who said the presidential candidates were already preparing for an indirect primary.
"Even if all the contestants agree among themselves and decide to step down for one of them, I am confident that our principal, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, will be the one they will step down for," he said. That is something with which I am completely at ease.
"If some people support Jonathan, the party must first accept him." And, in order to run, he must have been a member of the party for at least a year, and our primary is in less than a month. When there are competent hands on the ground, it will be tough for the party to declare they want to give him a waiver and pick him as a consensus candidate."
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