By Wilfred Eya
Less than one week to the commencement of campaigns by political parties ahead of 2023 general elections, indications continue to emerge that all is not well with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). For the main opposition party, it is literally one day, one trouble. It is like a house divided against itself with things daily falling apart among major stakeholders of the party.
The development comes despite initial optimism among a good percentage of Nigerians that the 2023 presidential elections present the PDP the best opportunity to wrest power from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC). Today, many believe the PDP can only achieve that if it survives the present threat and presents a common front to secure for the party, sufficient internal and external support during the elections.
Apart from the internal crisis arising from the fallout of its presidential election primary, the PDP’s chances of victory in some state chapters are also seriously under threats by intra-party crises.
In some states, the incumbent governors are in the middle of the troubles while some disgruntled National Assembly members who are not returning in 2023 are principal actors in others.
For instance, in Rivers, Delta, Edo, Oyo, Abia and Ebonyi, the state governors have been variously fingered in the internal squabbles of the PDP.
But the big issue is that since the party’s national convention in May, the loyalty of members of the party has been oscillating between the PDP presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike.
The bone of contention is the insistence of some stakeholders of the party including governors led by Wike, that its national chairman, Iyorchia Ayu, must vacate his position to give a sense of inclusiveness and balance of power in terms of the distribution of key positions in the party. The argument of Wike’s group is that the national chairman and other key positions of the party cannot remain in the North where the presidential candidate of the party emerged from.
Surprisingly, just last Thursday, at its 97th National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting in Abuja, the PDP passed a vote of confidence on Ayu and entrusting him with the responsibility to lead the party to next year’s general elections.
The decision came after major stakeholders of the party arose from the make or mar meeting with some far-reaching decisions aimed at resolving the dispute that had engulfed it since its convention in May, 2022.
At an earlier meeting of the party’s Board of Trustees, chairman of the Board (BoT), Senator Jibrin Walid (North) resigned his position to pave way for the emergence of the BoT secretary, Senator Adolphus Wabara, (South) to become the acting chairman.
With the development, many had thought the crisis was over and that Wike had lost another round of the battle to remove Ayu.
But rather than assuage Wike and his group, it annoyed them the more. The Rivers State governor described the BOT as an advisory body with merely ceremonial responsibilities and powers. He made himself clear for the umpteenth time that Ayu must go.
Daily Sun learnt that sensing the uncompromising stance of Wike, some forces loyal to the PDP presidential candidate had been pushing him to dump the Rivers governor who, they think, had become a major distraction to the forthcoming campaign.
However, in the calculation of critical observers, the Turaki Adamawa, being a veteran politician is being careful to dump Wike whose strategic place in the party and PDP presidential race cannot be overemphasized.
As it is, that the main opposition party is in dire straits is no more in doubt and the question on the lips of many is: Who will save the PDP from an imminent failure in 2023 general elections.
The precarious situation continued yesterday when Governor Wike’s team reportedly pulled out of the campaign council of Atiku Abubakar.
This came following a meeting early on Wednesday morning in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital.
Daily Sun gathered that members of the Rivers State governor’s team vowed not to play any role in Atiku’s campaign ahead of the 2023 general elections.
They insisted that the National Chairman of the PDP, Ayu, must resign for them to rescind their decision and insisted there was no going back on their position. Present at the meeting were aggrieved party leaders party chieftains, including founding members of the party, governors and former ministers.
For them, the position must come to the South for balance, justice, and equity in the party, failing which they will not play any role in Atiku Abubakar’s campaign council.
They also resolved that an acting Chairman from the South should lead the party on the national campaign, going into the elections and
made their position known in a resolution read by former deputy national chairman of the party, Chief Bode George, after a long meeting held at Governor Wike’s private residence, near Port Harcourt on Wednesday.
They maintained that their position was not negotiable as the chairmanship of Ayu undermined the unity and constitution of the party.
While accusing Ayu of compromising the May 28 and 29 presidential primaries of the party through his conduct, the members said the published presidential campaign council list was tantamount to putting the cart before the horse.
George while reading the resolution said they were worried over the division in the PDP, saying the party’s internal mechanism should brace up to the challenges.
“We resolve that we are deeply concerned by the division in our party. We are aware that over the years, our party has developed conflict resolution mechanisms that guarantee inclusiveness.
“The published presidential campaign council list translates to putting the cart before the horse.
“Senator Iyorchia Ayu must resign as the National Chairman of the party for an acting Chairman of the Southern Nigerian extraction to emerge and lead the party on the national campaign.
“Consequently, we resolve not to participate in the campaign council in whatever capacity until the resignation of Dr. Iyorchia Ayu.”
Another ally of Wike and former Plateau State Governor, Senator Jonah Jang, lampooned Ayu for embracing Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Tambuwal, and called him the hero of the convention.
Jang said the action of Ayu showed that the outcome of the primary was preplanned to short-change the other contestants.
He said, “For a National Chairman, Senator Iyorchia Ayu to go and embrace Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Tanbuwal, calling him the hero of the convention meant that there was a private arrangement that was done with Tambuwal to shortchange other contestants including Governor Wike.
“Here was a referee, who helped one of his sides to score a goal and then blew the whistle. This is not what we formed the PDP to do for Nigerians. Therefore, we unequivocally ask that Ayu must step down.”
The pro-Wike group said their support for Wike was not because he lost the presidential primary or because he was not chosen as the running mate to Atiku but in the interest of equity and justice in the party.
On his part, former Minister of Information, Prof. Jerry Gana, said, “You cannot build on a faulty foundation.
“This call for the chairman to step down or resign is not because any of us is aggrieved but because we believe it is important to ensure a just, fair, principled, and constitutional structure for the party. If we want to restructure Nigeria, we should have the courage to restructure our party”.
The Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, said: “We hope that the powers that be listen to the voice of reason and do the needful”
So, from recent events, the perception in many quarters is that the PDP looks like one that will be going into the 2023 general elections with bruises from its internal leadership battle. A lot of people argue that with campaigns for the general elections set to commence days from now, it is not certain if the party will come out healthy from its current leadership crises, even at its various state chapters.
As it appears, the same issue of zoning which the party ignored during the presidential primaries is threatening once again to be its albatross ahead of 2023 general elections.
The feud between factions loyal to the party’s Atiku Abubakar and Nyesom Wike over the seat of the PDP national chairman may eventually nail the coffin of the party as it is getting set to lose another presidential election next year.
With less than one week to the campaigns, Atiku may not trade Ayu, a man he feels has contributed largely to his success at the PDP presidential primary election to appease Wike. On the other hand, Wike is known not be afraid of political battles and would insist that Ayu, the same man he believes crushed his presidential ambition must go.
The foundation of the protracted crises was laid after the selection of Governor Ifeanyi Okowa as Atiku’s running. Strategists around Atiku supported Okowa because they felt, he is controversy-free and major stakeholders in the North would be comfortable with him.
However, with the backlash following that choice, it is difficult to predict how the PDP would swim ashore in the ensuing political battle ahead of 2023 general elections.