By Stephen Ubanna
The outcome of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, primaries, in which Atiku Abubakar, a former Vice President during Olusegun Obasanjo’s Administration and the Opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Presidential Candidate for the 2023, general elections, appears to have polarized the party into two Camps.
Atiku and his Advisers may have made the situation worse by playing into the hands of the powerful Nyensom Wike, governor of Rivers state and closest rival during the party primaries camp by selecting Ifeanyi Okowa, the governor of Delta state, described as a political feather weight as his running mate against the recommendation of the commendation of the Committee set to do so .
Former President Obaanjo may have strengthened the resolve of the Wike’s camp to fight back the Iyorche Ayu, led PDP, National Working Committee and the PDP Fag bearer, when he said recently that he made two misstates in 199 which included the choice of his running mate ahead of the general elections. He may have alluded to Atiku, the PDP, Presidential Candidate for the 2023, general elections. He had said that ‘’it was a mistake made in good faith but God saved his life’’, meaning that the Adamawa state born politician was a bad influence on him.
Ayu, the PDP, National Chairman, who had been under intense pressure since after the party primaries that elected Atiku, as the party Presidential Candidate last May have travelled abroad on vacation to calm his nerves to avoid developing High Blood Pressure, HBP, ahead of the 2023, elections. Atiku was said to have also travelled abroad for vacation. He was said to have been in close contact with the party Chairman brain storming on how to bring Wike and his supporters fully back into the party to stop the lingering crisis.
Although, Wike, the aggrieved Rivers state governor had travelled on vacation abroad abroad, his foot soldiers are giving Atiku’s camp much concern. Samuel Ortom, governor of Benue state where he declared his ambition to run for the 2023 Presidency on the ticket of the PDP, may have spoken the mind of other aggrieved members over the high level of injustice in the party, both before and after the PARTY primaries, when he accused Atiku, of not’’ consulting stakeholders in picking a running for the 2023, general elections on the ticket of the PDP’’.
He had alluded to the Yes – vote of 14 out of the 17 members of the Committee set up by the party to guide the former Nigerian Vice President in selecting his running mate for the 2023 general elections. The majority of the Committee memebers had cast their lot on the Rivers governor out of the three names submiited including Okowa, the Delta state governor but Atitku, who has the final say was said to have settled for the Delta state governor.
Many believe that he may have picked Okowa as his running mate to prevent a repeat of what happened between 199 and 2007, when he had a running battle with the then President Obasanjo as a Vice President as he was too powerful in the PDPD government. He may have had at the back of his mind that Wike would be too difficult to manage if he dares pick him as his runni mate and the party emerges as the winner of the 2023 general elections to form the next government.
It is not surprising why Ortom,the Benue state governor had said that he is’’ consulting with God on his choice for Nigerian President in 2023’’. He may have sent a signal to Atiku and those that had imposed that had imposed Okowa on him as the running mate for the 2023 general elections that the game is up. The message was very clear that PDP, may not get his vote, let alone the state vote. The situation may not be different in Rivers state.
Ayodele Fayoshe, a former governor of Ekiti state , and Atiku political ally, may have read the handwriting on the wall that the party may run into difficulty in that he had cried out for the party Leader Leadership and the Atiku to join forces to save the situation from degenerating ahead of the 2023 general elections.
Senator Walid Jibril, the Chairman of the party Board of Trustees, BOT, and other members of the BOT , who do not want the crisis between the Wike and Aiku Camp to consume the party ahead of the election may have intervened to save the crisis situation I the party from degenerating.
The PDP BOT may have intervened to avoid giving the ruling All Progressive Congress, APC, Presidential Candidate, Asiwaju Ahmed Bola Tinubu, a former governor of Lagos state and the party National Leader an upper hand in the elections or throwing up onther Candidates from other parties.
The PDP BOT members are worried that Peter Obi, the Labour Party, LP, Presidential Candidate, who has the backing of the Organised Labour , youths and unemployed in the society, and Rabiu Kwankwaso, a former governor of Kano state and the New Nigerian Peoples Party, NNPP, who have penetrated he traditional stronghold of the PDP and APC may change the political narrative of the country .
It was not surmising why Senator Jibril led PDP BOT, had set up a reconciliatory committee to meet with the aggrieved Wike in PortHarcourt to make peace. The committee which is Headed by Atiku, who is wearing the shoes and knows where it pinches , has 13 PDP governors as members.
The PDP BOT Chairman had said the reconciliatory committee also comprise the party’s Vice Presidential Candidate , Okowa, governor of Delta state, Ayu, the party National Chairman, as well as members of the National Working Committee, NWC. Given the importance attached to the peace meeting with the Wike’s camp, may have informed why former PDP governors and ministers , including party elders from various zones and sates of the Federation were included in the meeting.
The PDP BOT members may have been encouraged to reconcile the two waring camps tearing the PDP apart to forestall the mass exodus of the party members in Rivers from decamping to other parties, particular, the LP and to sun comments aimed at reducing or running down the party.
There is no gain saying the fact that Atiku and Ayu, led NWC, of the party may have realised their mistake that they have approached the party BOT members and elders from the different zones and states of the Federation to help in reaching out to the Rivers state governor who is an asset to the party. Jibril, the PDP Bot Chairman, had described the aggrieved Rivers state governor as a’’ very responsible and obedient PDP member who had assisted tremendously in building the party to its present status’’.
‘’ We must come back to our senses by giving total support to the party to enable it to form the next government by holding all political positions in Nigeria in 2023’’, he had said. Appealing to former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo an Goodluck Jonathan including former governors elected on the ticket of the PDP, not to add more fuel to the fire burning in the party but help out to quench it, stressing that this is the only way ‘’ to stop it from spreading’’.
Senator Jibril and Chairman of the PDP BOT, the party that pride itself as the biggest in Africa, had said that the party reconciliatory committee would visit Wike, the aggrieved Rivers state governor immediately After Atiku And Ayu, the party National Chairman return to the country from their vacation abroad.
Political analyst would want the PDP BOT Chairman and other members of the Board to work on Governor Ortom of Benue state and ensure that they could get him to their side to be able to win the heart of Wike back to the party. Although, the Rivers state governor has kept a closed lips since after the party primaries but his supporters have been talking , fueling speculations making the rounds that they may likely work against the party to prove a point that the Wike camp is no push over.
In a related development, Kwankwaso, who Nigerians had urged to take advantage of the crisis in the Opposition PDP and the plot by the APC to have a Muslim –Muslim ticket in the 2023, general elections to form an alliance with Obi, the LP Presidential Candidate, as alternative for Nigerians may run into a hitch.
This is because Kwankwaso, the Kano state born politician and the NNPP, Presidential Candidate would want Obi, the LP, Flag bearer to be his running mate which may not be acceptable to him. The NNPP Presidential Candidate had explained the rationale behind contesting the Presidential elections and not’’ a running mate to Obi, a south easterner’’.
He had alluded to the fact that the over seven years of the Buhari Administration have messed up the Nigerian’s economy, worsened the insecurity situation, killed the educational sector and put the infrastructure in a sorry state.
He had told those that cares to listen that ‘’there is no possibility of the LP Candidate winning the 2023 general elections on the party ticket except going into alliance with the NNPP, which have offices across the country despite coming into full force to seek for political office in the last four months.
Justifying why Obi cannot win the 203 , Presidential elections, he had said that the LP Presidential support is mainly from the south east and not spread, noting that that’’ the votes from the region alone cannot win anybody a Presidential Seat in this country.
Note that the duo, Kwankwaso, NNPP and Obi, LP, are in the 2023 , Presidential race to succeed the Katsina state born Nigerian President after the 2023 general elections.
