Politics

Anxiety In PDP Over Wike, APC Govs Meeting

Published

2 years ago

July 10, 2022

Editor

The decision of Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike, to host some All Progressives Congress,APC, governors believed to be close associates of the party’s presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, has sparked fresh anxiety in the Peoples Democratic Party,PDP.

It was gathered that while leaders of the PDP are haggling over how best to handle Wike and his supporters, especially among governors elected on its platform, the move by APC governors took “only a few” of them by surprise.

A member of the PDP National Executive Committee who pleaded anonymity so as not to “jeopardize fence-mending efforts,” said the party is bigger than every member.

He said: “PDP has been around since 1998. We have seen all kinds of members come and go.

“With due respect to everyone, membership of this party is by choice. We would like to have people on board, but we would be better off with those who believe in the cause of the party.

“I don’t think any sacrifice is too much for individual members to make for us to return to power in 2023.

“Yes, without doubt, Rivers State is one of our biggest strongholds and we have accorded and will continue to accord the state and its people the respect they deserve.

“But no individual can hold the party to ransom. Politics is about interest and our interest as a party now is how to win the next election to rescue this country we all love so passionately from the precipice the APC has dragged us to.”

Another top-ranking member of the party who spoke in confidence said: “Thankfully, our National Chairman has returned and we expect our presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, to return after the Eid-el-Kabir festivities, I can guarantee you that we will meet and take appropriate steps to resolves all outstanding issues.

Asked if he was worried about the prospect of Wike and his allies jumping ship, the source replied, “of course, who won’t be worried? The 2023 election is just months away. We need all our committed members.”

A member of the PDP Board of Trustees, Maina Waziri, in an interview aired on Arise Television, on Friday, shed some light on some information available to party leaders on what some of Wike’s allies within the party’s fold were up to.

He pointedly accused one of Wike’s close associates, former Ekiti State Governor, Ayo Fayose of anti-party activities.

Waziri said: “The first culprit for the failure of the PDP in Ekiti is Fayose, who worked for the APC. We know he is already with (Asiwaju) Bola Tinubu to work for the APC.”

Speaking further he said: “I was in Turkey. I went to Turkey two Fridays ago for a long-

deserved holiday having gone through contentious preparations for the national convention.

“Five days after my arrival, we accidentally ran into one another with Governor (Nyesom) Wike, Gov. (Okozie) Ikpeazu and their entourage in the lift of the same hotel I was staying in.

“I was coming down, he was going up and it was a pleasant surprise. We exchanged banters and pleasantries with them and I jokingly told Governor Wike that ‘’God catch you, you’ve been avoiding me.’’ I said God has brought us together, let us use this opportunity to discuss and he agreed.

“Information at my disposal said Governor Makinde also came to Turkey to the same hotel and the three of them were locked in a meeting that went into the wee hours of the morning of Friday. We were not able to meet to discuss what will be newsworthy.”

Also speaking about calls by some elements within the party who had started a subtle campaign for the ouster of the party’s National Chairman, Iyorchia Ayu, Waziri dismissed such calls.

He argued that the PDP is a party built on processes and procedures, noting that the era of one individual orchestrating the removal of the party chairman was gone.

According to him, the fact that the party held its primary and the outcome didn’t go a certain way was not enough reason to remove the chairman.

Maina said:”There is an understanding that should the President of the country of PDP extraction come from a region, the party chairman should come from another region.

“Have we got a President of PDP extraction? For us to go through the whole gamut of party leadership in the PDP, we are calling for another convention when we are five months to the election.’’

The PDP chieftain went down memory lane to trace Governor Wike’s role in the sack of two of the last three former chairmen.

Waziri said; “With due respect to Governor Wike, why should he be in the vanguard of changing the national chairman all the time? I’m a dedicated and committed party man like him. I have been in this party since 1998.”

Last Friday, some governors elected on the platform of APC as well as close political associates of Tinubu, held a closed-door meeting with Wike at his private residence in Port Harcourt.

Speculations are rife that the visit was in connection with plans by the APC to win Wike over.

Wike and his supporters are aggrieved following what they claimed was the conspiracy which not only denied Wike the party’s presidential ticket, but also the opportunity to emerge as running mate to PDP presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar.

Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu led the APC delegation, which included Ondo State governor, Rotimi Akeredolu, SAN, former Ekiti State governor, Ayo Fayose, Governor Kayode Fayemi and Senator Olaka Nwogu among others.

VANGUARD

Politics

Edo Guber: Ex-Speaker Rejoins APC With Over 2000 Followers

Published

18 hours ago

May 20, 2024

Editor

A Former Speaker of the Edo State House of Assembly, Francis Okiye, rejoined the All Progressives Congress.

The former Speaker had resigned his membership of the People Democratic Party on May 10, assuring that he would announce his next political move in the coming days.

Speaking at a rally in Edo Central, he said that about 2500 people moved to APC in Esan West, Esan Central, Esan North East, Esan South East and Igueben.

He said, “About 2500 people from Labour, PDP joined the APC on Sunday. Prior to today (Sunday), we had met, discussed and asked Governor Godwin Obaseki led PDP government to address the issue of alienation, disillusionment and high handedness and despotic tendencies.

“Nothing has been done to address the issue, so we the “aborigine” PDP, have just given the Obaseki led PDP a red card.

When asked how his return to APC will help the party, he said, “My movement to APC will help the party and I will be simple with my analysis.

“In a democracy, votes matter. So my exit from PDP is a minus to the party whether anybody likes to interpret other wise. If they are Democrats, they will know that at least they have lost my vote not to talk of many others that moved with me to APC.

“With what happened today, they have lost a minimum of 500 votes and these 500 people also have people they can convince to work for APC.

“We will begin the house to house campaign soon and let people know why they must leave PDP and join in the APC. They musy vote a candidate that is humane and not business people who are in the state to make profit,” he added.

Politics

Atiku Hints On Supporting Obi For 2027 Presidential Race

Published

2 days ago

May 18, 2024

Editor

The 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar, has said that if in 2027, the party decides that it is the South-East’s turn and selects Peter Obi as its candidate, he will readily offer his support.

“I have said repeatedly and I even said it before the 2023 general elections that if the PDP decides to zone the presidential ticket to the South or South-East specifically, I won’t contest it. As long as it’s the decision of the party, I will abide by it. But I contested the 2023 presidential ticket because it was thrown open to all members of the party.

“If the party decides that it’s the turn of the South-East and Peter Obi is chosen, I won’t hesitate to support him,” Atiku declared in a recent interview with BBC Hausa Service.

He added that a merger between the PDP and Labour Party is possible.

Atiku added that members of the party would decide his fate in the 2027 general elections.

The former Vice President mentioned that his recent meeting with Obi might indicate a possible alliance leading up to the 2027 general elections.

Responding to questions about the meeting with Obi, Atiku said, “It’s just a normal friendly meeting that we often have, particularly among us in the opposition parties. Such meetings are healthy for Nigeria’s democracy and in the country’s interest.”

On whether this will bring about a merger, he said, “Yes, it’s very much possible. We can merge to achieve a common goal. So, it’s possible, and nothing can stop it if we wish to achieve that.”

The former Vice President, who denied that the choice of presidential candidate might frustrate the merger discussion, said, “That’s not true. That challenge will not arise. I can tell you that the choice of who will fly the flag of the party won’t be an issue.”

On why he’s still in active politics, Atiku said, “Yes, we can’t keep quiet and watch things go wrong. People are suffering and we are committed to making Nigeria a better place.

“It means you are not tired of politics of Nigeria? Not at all. I am still in active politics in Nigeria, at least, as long as God permits.

“My age doesn’t stop the young ones from testing their fate. Everybody, irrespective of age, is allowed to aspire to be anybody in the society, politically or otherwise.”

Regarding his 2027 Presidential ambition, the former Vice President said “That would depend on the decision of my party. I can’t make any categorical statement on that. It’s the duty of the party to decide on the way to go in the next election.

“Until that time comes. Let’s just wait and see how it will turn out.

“It must not be interpreted like that. I must not be eyeing elections to have meetings with political friends and associates. Currently, we are practising democracy in this country which we fought for with our blood.”

Last week, Obi held a private meeting with Atiku and some other PDP leaders in Abuja.

Obi also met separately with former Jigawa State Governor Sule Lamido and former Senate President Bukola Saraki, sparking speculation about a possible coalition for the 2027 general elections.

Obi was a PDP member until 2022, when he left to pursue his presidential ambitions with the Labour Party.

He finished third behind Atiku in the February 23 presidential election, which was won by Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress.

Atiku blamed Obi’s departure from the PDP for his loss to Tinubu.

Analysts argued that Atiku’s 6,984,520 votes combined with Obi’s 6,101,533 votes could have secured a win against Tinubu, who received 8,794,726 votes.

Monday’s meeting marked the first public interaction between Obi and Atiku since the election.

Social media and online platforms were flooded with viral photos of Obi’s meetings with the three PDP figures on Monday.

In 2019, Atiku and Obi ran together on the PDP ticket but were defeated by former President Muhammadu Buhari of the APC.

However, due to internal conflicts, Obi, who was Atiku’s running mate in 2019, left the PDP and ran as the Labour Party’s candidate in the 2023 presidential election.

Politics

JUST IN: Ex-PDP Deputy National Chair, Oyedokun Defects To APC

Published

4 days ago

May 16, 2024

Editor

A former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Alhaji Shuaib Oyedokun, has resigned his membership of the party and announced defection to the All Progressives Congress.

Oyedokun, a notable personality within the political circle in Osun State and beyond, said he decided to dump the PDP after consultation with his loyalists.

He said he would be joining APC, where his experience, efforts, and leadership roles would be valued and appreciated.

His resignation letter addressed to the National Chairman of the PDP through the ward, local government and state chairmen of the party obtained late Thursday further read, “As a functional member and leader of PDP (Ward 13, Jagun/ Osi-Bale Ode, Odo-Otin South Local Government, Osun State,) whose high electoral productivity and value have been credibly and positively acknowledged in my ward, across the local council, state and country-wide for the enhancement of the fortune of the PDP, I have the honour (though with pain) in announcing the renunciation of my membership of the party on principle, having observed that the ideals of we, founding members, had been sorely contaminated.

“In taking this step which is not even without due consultation with my teaming loyalists in the PDP, I have consequently decided to shift my allegiance to the All Progressives Congress (APC) where I believe my experience, efforts and leadership roles would be valued and appreciated.”

Oyedokun’s defection to the APC is coming at the time the aspirant he supported during the 2022 Osun governorship primary of PDP, Mr Dotun Babayemi is also moving to the national ruling party.

Osun APC said on Wednesday that Babayemi and his supporters would be dumping PDP and joining the party at a rally scheduled to be held in Osogbo on Friday.
PUNCH