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The battle line seems to have been drawn between the camp of the PDP presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, and followers of the five aggrieved Peoples Democratic Party governors as both parties quarrel over the governors’ threat to dump Atiku ahead of the 2023 presidential election.
The governors who have vowed not to campaign for Atiku recently said that their preferred presidential candidate would be announced in January.
However, Atiku’s campaigners have warned against the governors’ plan to dump the presidential candidate of their party.
The bone of contention
The crisis between Atiku and the governors worsened following the refusal of the PDP National Chairman, Iyorchia Ayu to resign.
Governors Nyesom Wike (Rivers), Seyi Makinde (Oyo), Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia), Samuel Ortom (Benue), and Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu states and their loyalists had called for Ayu’s resignation over alleged lopsidedness in the leadership of the party.
Though Atiku and the aggrieved governors had several meetings to resolve the crisis, Ayu’s failure to step down as demanded by the governors truncated the reconciliation efforts.
According to The Punch, the governors, barring any twist would soon begin to campaign against Atiku in their respective states.
It was reported that issues of trust and loyalty to the party would feature prominently in their campaign against the former Vice President.
The newspaper also reported that a source close to the Benue State governor, Samuel Ortom said the five governors “have agreed among themselves to support a presidential candidate from the South.’’
Melaye, Bwala react
However, Senator Dino Melaye, the spokesman for the PDP Presidential Campaign Council, has warned the governors that their plan to dump Atiku would affect their political future.
Melaye predicted that the governors’ political careers would come to an end should they ditch the candidate of their party.
He said, “No blackmail, hate, or outrageous envy will stop Atiku. I pray it is not true.
“Attacking Atiku will cost them their political future. You don’t fight a man who has done nothing to provoke you. Atiku’s only offence is that he won a presidential primary transparently and openly. No man should play God.’’
While advising the governors to have a rethink, Melaye maintained that it was too late for them to go against Atiku.
“It is too late to stop Atiku. They should have a re-think while they can. Atiku will be president because the people have decided.
‘’My advice to the G-5 is ‘don’t end your political career because of an inordinate ambition and capricious manifestation that will yield no result.’ If they take that step, it will be the last kick of a dying horse,” he said.
Daniel Bwala, another spokesman of the PDP Campaign Council believes the 12 million Northern votes President Muhammadu Buhari gathered in all the elections he contested in are now in the bag for Atiku.
“If you don’t know, Atiku has inherited the 12m votes of Buhari already. When you add his 8m plus the 12m, Atiku is already coming to the election with 20m votes,” he said.
Wike's ally fires back
Reacting to Melaye’s claim, Wike’s ally, Chief Ogbonna Nwuke said the former lawmaker was simply arrogating the powers Atiku doesn’t have to the candidate.
Nwuke said the aggrieved PDP governors have the right to support whoever they like for the presidential election.
“Except to say that malice may need to be proven by those who say any decision taken that does not support Atiku or any candidate for that matter is something to be seen as anti-party.
“Then, I think it will be proper to wait, go slowly and try to appreciate that position when they take that position. The rest will fall within the realms of speculation if we were to go on without clearly seeing what action they take and how they take them,” he said.
He said Atiku can be Melaye’s God but cannot be God to others.
The Chairman, Publicity and Communications Committee, Rivers State PDP Campaign Council, therefore, advised Melaye to focus more on fundamental issues.