Pressure is mounting on Senator George Akume, Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), to resign and take over as national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) following the resignation of Abdullahi Ganduje.

Ganduje, a former governor of Kano, stepped down on Friday citing health reasons, bringing an end to his 22-month tenure as APC chairman.

In the wake of his resignation, stakeholders in the APC from the north-central geopolitical zone are renewing calls for the chairmanship position to be returned to the region, in line with the party’s 2022 zoning arrangement.

Akume, a former governor of Benue, is believed by party insiders to be a frontrunner for the role, given his political pedigree and experience.

However, he has not publicly indicated interest in the job.

Reacting to the speculation, Bayo Onanuga, special adviser to the president on information and strategy, said no decision had been taken on Akume’s status.

“There is no truth to the information circulating about Akume’s replacement.

“Agents of mischief fabricated it. The presidency advises Nigerians to disregard the fake news,” Onanuga said in a statement late Sunday.

ThisDay reports that at least five prominent politicians from the north-central zone are also being mentioned as potential successors to Ganduje.

They include former Nasarawa governor, Senator Umar Tanko Al-Makura; former Plateau governor, Senator Joshua Dariye; former Kogi governor, Yahaya Bello; Senator Solomon Ewuga; and Senator Sani Musa, who represents Niger East in the Senate.

The north-central previously held the position through Abdullahi Adamu until his resignation in July 2023. Ganduje, from the north-west, was appointed in August 2023 at the party’s 12th National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting, a move that sparked protests from some north-central party leaders.

Following Ganduje’s resignation, Deputy National Chairman (North), Hon. Ali Dalori, assumed the role of acting national chairman, as provided in the party’s constitution.

He is expected to serve in that capacity until the next NEC meeting in December when a substantive chairman will be appointed.

With the renewed push from the north-central bloc, party insiders say internal lobbying is intensifying ahead of the December meeting.