Linus Oota, Lafia
Former FCT minister and leader of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP ) in Nasarawa State, Senator Solomon Ewuga, alongside his followers are re-viewing their membership of the party with a view to switching to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
The former deputy governor and 2019 PDP governorship aspirant and his followers are believed to be in their final days in PDP as their plans of defection would be sealed before March 2, 2019, governorship election.
The anticipated defection of Ewuga and other bigwigs, it is believed, will deplete the ranks and chances of the PDP and APGA governorship candidates who are his kinsmen.
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Preparatory to Senator Ewuga’s defection, the state governor, Umaru Tanko Al-Makura, last Friday, appointed him leader of the 2018 Christian pilgrims to Jerusalem.
Senator Ewuga who expressed gratitude to the governor for finding him worthy of the appointment, promised to render exemplary services and cautioned the pilgrims against actions that could embarrassed the state government.
Senator Ewuga is said to be a very strong factor in Nasarawa State politics; he commands large followership among the people and was instrumental to Governor Al-Makura’s defeat of the incumbent in 2011.
He is from the northern part of the state; all the senators and members of House of Representatives who won elections in that zone since 1999 to date are believed to have ridden on his back.
According to investigation, a number of factors might have been responsible for the sudden change of mind of the PDP leader. One is the alleged over-bearing influence of the PDP state chairman and his role in the last governorship primaries.
Our correspondent also gathered that the non- preparedness of the PDP governorship candidate in the state, Hon. David Ombugadu, in addressing campaign matters among other worrying issues and his non- nonchalant attitude towards major PDP stakeholders might have also been part of the reason.