2023 Presidency: ACF Reveals The Type Of Candidate It Will Support To Succeed Buhari

The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has declared that any candidate it will support for the 2023 presidency must be one who has good plans for the north.

This is as the forum denied reports that it has endorsed any candidate or political party ahead of the 2023 general elections.

The position of the ACF was contained in a communique signed by its National Chairman, Chief Audu Ogbeh which was issued on Wednesday at the end of its National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting at its headquarters in Kaduna.

The forum said there is the need for the northern region to come together and establish a bank as all commercial banks with northern interest didn’t scale the hurdle of consolidation during the time of former President Olusegun Obasanjo and Professor Charles Soludo as CBN Governor.

It also observed that there is the need to meet with Afenifere/ Ndigbo to iron out some issues of national importance.

Part of the communique reads: “As the country moves towards 2023, we need to remind our members and all that we are not a political party. We do not have a candidate and will not endorse one in the 2023 election North or South.

“When the political parties who have the exclusive permission of the Constitution to sponsor candidates choose a presidential candidate each, we shall engage the candidates and find out what programme they have for the north.

“We in the ACF are worried that all the commercial banks promoted by northerners lost their licenses during the banking consolidation policies of Obasanjo and Soludo. There is the need for the northern business class to put their heads together and establish banks.

“We have always complained of late of the security situation in the north. We are still worried about this. The security conditions in the north are far from satisfactory. We urge the Federal and state government to embark on measures that will improve the situation.

“We had proposed in the past that a meeting with Afenifere/ Ndigbo. This meeting has not held because of logistic problems. These will soon be worked out and members informed accordingly.”