/ 11 February 1999

OBASANJO LOSING SUPPORT?

ALL eyes in Nigeria will on this weekend’s meeting of the Nigerian People’s Democratic Party in Jos, in the central plateau region, where party members meet to pick from a list headed by former military ruler Olusegun Obasanjo and former vice presidential candidate Alex Ekwueme. Obasanjo, a retired general who ran Nigeria from 1976 to 1979 and then made history by handing over to a civilian regime, has long been considered the front runner for the nomination but support has reportedly shifted towards Ekwueme. “Obasanjo’s people are worried. Ekwueme’s people are upbeat,” said a political analyst. “Northern support for Obasanjo is moving.”