There is hardly a perfect murder. That reality has not stopped men from trying to pull off one though. Iyorchia Ayu, an educated man and presently chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), must have fancied himself a smart man capable of pulling off a perfect murder of sorts. Ayu’s appointment as chairman of the PDP in early 2022 provided him an opportunity, as it were, to prove what he could do.
The PDP chairman had been in the party long enough to know that the zoning policy of the PDP was its heart and unique selling point in a political environment bereft of ideological distinction between virtually all political parties. Indeed, Ayu was a founding member of the party. He sure knew the place of the zoning policy in PDP.
Not long after he assumed the leadership of PDP at its Wadata Plaza, however, Ayu set about to do what none of his predecessors had dared. He moved to kill the zoning policy. It may be pertinent to point out that it was not for lack of courage, but for appreciation of the wisdom behind the zoning policy, that the chairmen of the party before Ayu did not even think of tampering with the policy. It was either Ayu did not give a damn about the history of the party he was called to lead or he had to do what he had to do.
In moving to dismantle the zoning policy the way he set about it, Ayu tried to pull off a perfect murder. It is doubtful that he was propelled by conviction, but then he cannot deny ownership of his actions. He set about his assignment in a rather surreptitious manner, with many around him failing to read his inscrutable face. Since activities related to the 2023 general election were around the corner, the new party chairman was left with little or no room to hide his hands for long.
While Ayu knew what his assignment was, most of his colleagues on the National Working Committee did not seem to know what was in the offing. When he commenced the process of killing the zoning policy in the party, Ayu already had a plan for the major surgery that would remove the heart of PDP. By deploying a strategy of using multiple layers of ad hoc committees to validate what he set out to do, Ayu apparently believed that he had smoothly pulled off something akin to a perfect murder. That’s what his assignment was. He tried. But now, see what he has in his hands: a huge mess.
Last week, the office of Ayu issued a statement to the effect that he was still the chairman of PDP. Sure, he still is. But! Once someone in a position starts issuing a statement that he is still in charge, there is a problem. The implication of such a public notice as Ayu’s office served last week is that the occupier of such a seat is not sitting pretty. It is the same thing with a piece on property on which is marked “Not for Sale.” That notice almost always implies that the property in question is on the verge of being sold off, one way or another.
There is no doubt that these are worrying times for PDP. Not that the party has had any extended peace of mind since it lost controlling power seven years ago. Indeed, the party has gone through life-threatening ailments of all forms within the period. Even before then. The PDP, as a matter of fact, has had a traumatic life history, especially from the latter part of its 16-year reign.
No other political party in the history of party politics in Nigeria has had such a consistent history of turncoat leaders who glaringly undermined the party they were supposed to lead. There was, for instance, Alhaji Adamu Muazu who, at the height of campaigns and preparations for the 2015 elections, had his body in PDP but with his spirit elsewhere. The aberration was unmistakable, but neither the incumbent President nor the party could help themselves. Of course, the party lost power. Down the line came Ali Modu Sheriff, who, apparently, was seconded to the party to liquidate it. The battle for the soul of the party was draining, but it survived.
Interestingly, the only recent chairman of the party who seemed to have worked without divided loyalty was the one principalities within the party removed, unceremoniously – Uche Secondus. Such is the destiny of the PDP. Now comes Ayu, who may yet be the last straw.
Rumours of Ayu’s suspension, which prompted the public reaction of his office last week, may be a foretaste of things to come. Having presided over the national convention that saw the emergence of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar as the party’s presidential candidate, chances are that Ayu may be saved from the guillotine. He will be a lame duck chairman though. But then, he may have served his purpose.
The brewing restiveness in PDP since its national convention gained a voice last week when Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State, speaking on behalf of no fewer than six of the party’s 13 state governors, publicly withheld support for the party’s presidential ticket. The grouse of the governors is that their class prefect was snubbed by Atiku in picking his running mate. That may sound like a high school revolt, but it is a big problem for PDP no less.
And to imagine that this dissension is arising seven months from the general election and two weeks from a critical governorship election in Osun State.
When Ayu jettisoned the zoning policy of PDP, he proved himself a man with little care for principles and history. There are other worrisome stories out of Wadata Plaza on pervasive disdain for principles, especially in matters related to party primaries across the states.
PDP seems tethered to the brink since it lost power at the centre. The worst always appears to be nearby. Ayu’s disposition and acts as chairman are ominous. Will he be the undertaker? How the party can sidestep a looming disaster is left to be seen.