From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
Hopes of resolving the protracted crisis in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) dimmed considerably, last Friday, as the party’s Board of Trustees (BoT) failed to broker a truce between the warring parties.
The BoT at the end of its mediation efforts over crisis in the party at the weekend approved that the National Chairman, Iyorchia Ayu, can remain in office until after the 2023 elections.
But, the decision has not gone done well with party leaders who are insisting that the chairman must quit.
Sunday Sun gathered that this in an indication that except there is sudden change of mind in the two warring camps in the PDP, the opposition party would be going into the next general elections with a sharply divided house.
The PDP has been embroiled in crisis, which erupted after its national convention in May.
One of the camps is led by the Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike, backed by Governors Samuel Ortom, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, Okezie Ikpeazu and Seyi Makinde of Benue, Enugu, Abia and Oyo states.
The G-5 governors, who lost out in the contest for the PDP presidential vice president slot have continued to insist on the replacement of Ayu as the party chairman, with a Southerner, ahead of the 2023 election, in order to strike a North/South balance in the PDP, as a condition for reconciliation in the party.
Other members in the Wike camp include former PDP Deputy National Chairman, Olabode George; former Minister of Information, Jerry Gana, as well as some former governors and former members of the National Assembly.
The other camp belongs to Ayu, who has continued to maintain that he would not resign as he was elected for a term of four years. The PDP chairman enjoys the support of the party’s presidential candidate and former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar and some party leaders in the North.
Last month, the Wike camp withdrew from the PDP Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) pending Ayu’s replacement.
According to them, the PDP chairman must respect his promise to quit if a Northerner emerges the presidential candidate of the opposition party.
As part of efforts to resolve the crisis in the PDP, the BoT had raised a peace panel to interface with all the major gladiators in the crisis. The panel led by the acting Chairman of the board, Adolphus Wabara, had interfaced with all the aggrieved governors, as well as the PDP vice presidential candidate, Ifeanyi Okowa in its search for peace in the opposition party, ahead of the 2023 polls.
Consequently, hopes were high that the party elders would be able to get the feuding parties to shift grounds, so as to allow for a resolution of the issues plaguing the PDP.
However, at the end of its assignment, the BoT said that Ayu should stay as chairman, until the conduct of the 2023 polls.
The board in a communique issued at the end of the meeting, and read by Wabara implored Ayu «to give a firm assurance that he would resign his position after the 2023 elections.»
The BoT chairman had harped on the need for party leaders to make sacrifices, ahead of the 2023 polls, noting that the goal of the PDP is to win the elections.
Similarly, Ayu said that the BoT intervention in the party crisis was informed by the need to assuage wounded feelings, so that the PDP can approach the next general elections with a united house.
“The NWC of which I am the chairman is very desirous of having a united party. Since we came in, we have worked towards having a very united and effective party that can fight and win the forthcoming elections. In spite of the perceived crisis in the party, we have worked hard behind the scenes to bring about peace and reconciliation in the party.
“Many of us in the NWC have reached out to members of the party who are not happy and talked to them. We had series of meetings with them and we also felt that since the matter has not been completely resolved, The BoT as the conscience of the party, are advisors, made up of very responsible members of the party, should also add their voice to what is going on in the party. It is on that note that NWC decided to invite the chairman of the BoT to put together the committee to seek ways of bringing this reconciliation in the party,” he said.
Like in the other previous interventions, the PDP BoT failed to get the gladiators to shift grounds in their respective demands.
Ironically, as the BoT meeting was on to consider the report of its peace committee, Wike was having a live media chat, where he reiterated the demand of his group for the replacement of Ayu as national chairman. The governor noted that it was the only way to resolve the stand-off in the party.
He said: “Zone the chairmanship to anywhere in the South. It will be okay for us. There are stages in guerrilla warfare and we’re not going to back down. They should not come and talk to Wike.
“The people they’re sending to me have different ideas about the issue, but I keep insisting that we must do things the way our party has always done. Ayu knows the presidential candidate and chairman can’t come from the same area…”
A source close to one of the aggrieved governors told Sunday Sun that like Governor Wike said during the media chat, the five governors would remain in the PDP, adding that they would, however, “concentrate their energy in mobilizing support for PDP candidates in their respective states. But until their demand is met, they may not have anything to do with the presidential campaign. “
Sunday Sun also gathered that the PDP may have decided to move on with its presidential campaigns, while it continues to make efforts to pacify the aggrieved governors, hoping that they will come around.
The opposition party had put its presidential campaign on hold last week to enable it engage with the aggrieved governors.
Indeed, yesterday, Wike, Ortom, Ikpeazu and Makinde jetted out to Spain, an indication that they would not participate as the PDP resumes its presidential campaign tomorrow in Kaduna.
A source close to the PDP candidate told Sunday Sun that “the train may have left the station, but it is going to stop at stations and it will take off either people who may have missed the initial take off and they will come onboard. And no one will be left behind.”
A member of the PDP National Executive Committee (NEC), who does not want his name in print, told our correspondent that “if Wike and his people, insist that they won’t participate in the presidential campaign, there is nothing we can do. We will go to the election without them. It is either of two things that will happen.”
Sunday Sun gathered that the protracted crisis has continued to unsettle members of the opposition party, with many apprehensive that the development is not in the best interest of the PDP, especially given the keen contest for the 2023 general elections
Former governor of Enugu State and Senator representing Enugu East Senatorial zone in the National Assembly, Chimaroke Nnamani, noted that the situation is not in the best interest of the party.
Nnamani, in a statement last week, had noted that the opposition party cannot afford to go into the 2023 polls with five out its governors outside the fold.
According to him, “politics is local and the folks from these affected states parading with the PDP leadership will not deliver their polling booths without the governors…without the involvement of the governors that are our leaders, these mere cheer leaders and feel good political operatives cannot deliver.
“They can drag themselves from their home states to Abuja. Some are Abuja permanent residents. They dress the meetings and colour the rallies, but that is what it is, political colour dressing.”