President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday met with Caucus of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, with former Delta State Governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan making a surprise appearance.

Uduaghan was a two-term governor of the oil rich state, under the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party between 2007 and 2015. In recent times, there have been unconfirmed reports of his switch to the APC.

The meeting was being attended by Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo and members of the National Executive Committee of the APC led by its chairman of the APC, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole. National leader of the party, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and former interim chairman, Chief Bisi Akande were also at the meeting.

Others attending the meeting were APC governors of Borno, Jigawa, Niger, Plateau, Kogi, Adamawa, Ondo, Kano, Ogun, Oyo, Katsina, Osun, Yobe, Nasarawa, Kebbi, Imo, and Lagos.

L-R Buhari, Oshiomhole and Senator Lawan, majority leader

Also at the meeting were former governor of Ekiti state, Engineer Segun Oni, Majority leader of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, former Ebonyi governor, Mr Martin Elechi; former Borno State Governor, Ali Sheriff; former Lagos State Governor, Buba Marwa, General Lawrence Onoja, Jim Nwobodo and Sen. Kabiru Gaya.

Others were former APC National Chairman, John Odigie-Oyegun; former Enugu State Governor, Sylva Chime, former Edo Governor, Oserheimen Osunbor.

Also in attendance were the former Senate President, Ken Nnamani, former Ekiti State governor, Niyi Adebayo, former Akwa Ibom governor, Godswill Akpabio, former Bayelsa governor, Mr Sylva Timipre, former petroleum minister, Don Etiebet, and the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed.

Some members of the National Assembly from both Senate and the House of Representatives are also in attendance

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reliably learnt that the meeting being held behind closed doors would be discussing socio-political issues including the forthcoming APC party primaries.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had in January released the Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the 2019 general elections.

The timetable covered the Presidential, National and State Assembly, Governorship and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Council elections.

The timetable, which was issued by the INEC chairman, Prof. Yakubu Mahmoud in Abuja, indicated that party primaries for the Presidential, Governorship, Federal and State Elections would begin on Aug. 18 to end on Oct. 7, 2018.

The Federal Capital Territory Area Council Elections would commence on Sept. 4 to end on Oct. 27.

NAN gathered that the meeting of the APC Caucus would deliberate on whether to adopt direct primaries being advocated by the party’s national chairman, Oshiohmole, or indirect primaries, through delegate system

•Ex-PDP Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan, centre, with former APC Deputy National Chairman, South-West, Mr Segun Oni; and Former Governor of Zamfara State, Alhaji Aliyu Shinkafi during the APC National Caucus Meeting at the Presidential Villa in Abuja on Tuesday night.

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