He said it would also be detrimental to the party if it presents an unpopular governorship candidate.
Pate, a governorship aspirant on the platform of the ruling party, said this in an interview with journalists in Abuja, on Friday.
The former Minister spoke after he was screened by the APC panel set up to screen governorship aspirants.
According to him, the preference of most aspirants for the direct primary was to eliminate corruption and provide a level playing field for all aspirants.
Pate said, “We have made our case, if the party wants to win Bauchi State, it should put forward a credible, popular candidate.
“At this point, we know that the mass of people in Bauchi State are worried that an imposition will not stand well in the general elections.
“So, we place our faith on the leadership of the party to do the right thing and allow fair process to play out otherwise we cannot guarantee the APC winning Bauchi State.”
