PDP chairmanship: Governors’ Forum summons aspirants today

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8 years ago

Former Ogun State governor, Chief Gbenga Daniel (right) with former military president, General Ibrahim Babangida, during Daniel’s visit, as part of his nationwide campaign for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) national chairmanship, in Minna, Niger State, on Saturday.

The battle for the position of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) national chairman may have shifted to Enugu State as the party’s Governors’ Forum summoned all the aspirants for interaction on Sunday.

A source close to the Enugu State governor, Ifeanyi Ugwanyi, told Sunday Tribune in Abuja, on Saturday, that the meeting would kick off at 3pm at the Governor’s lodge.

The aspirants are: Professor Tunde Adeniran, a one time Education Minister and member of the Board of Trustees (BoT); Chief Olabode George, former national vice and deputy chairman of the party; Professor Taoheed Adedoja, former Sports and Special Duties Minister.

Others are Chief Gbenga Daniel, a former governor of Ogun State; Senator Rashidi Ladoja, a former Oyo State governor; Prince Uche Secondus, former acting national chairman of the party; Professor Wale Oladipo, the immediate national secretary of the party, and Mr Jimi Agbaje, the gubernatorial candidate of the party in the 2015 election for Lagos State.

The source revealed that all the concerned aspirants had been duly informed through text messages sent to them directly by one of the aides to the host governor.

The source said that the interface with the aspirants by the governors was part of the ongoing efforts at having a consensus candidate among the aspirants ahead of the convention slated for December 9, this year, in Abuja.

The South-West Zone BoT of the party, under the leadership of Alhaji Shuaibu Oyedokun, had, last week, pruned the number of the aspirants from the zone to the trio of George, Adedoja and Adeniran, which triggered uproar from some quarters and insisted that the race must be thrown open for all the aspirants.

The forum is made up of all the governors elected on the platform of the party under the chairmanship of the Ekiti State governor, Mr Ayodele Fayose.

Meanwhile, as part of his nationwide campaign tour on his ambition to become national chairman of the PDP, Chief Gbenga Daniel again, on Saturday, visited a former president of Nigeria, General Ibrahim Babangida (IBB), in his home in Minna, Niger State.

Daniel had earlier visited the former president in his house, prior to embarking on the nationwide tour, where Babangida described him as his chairman-in-waiting and urged other members to support his candidature.

While receiving the aspirant and his entourage, Babangida expressed delight with the sophisticated campaign and prayed for the success of what he described as an unprecedented campaign effort.

He reiterated his earlier position that Daniel possessed all the qualities the party needed in a national chairman, adding that he would bring in fresh breath of air into the largest political party in Africa, if elected into office.

Babangida urged the party members to see OGD’s ambition as selfless, and prayed for his success.

In his response, Daniel promised to do his best to uplift the party and restore its lost glory, if voted into office.

He emphasised that the time had come to rescue the nation and its people from the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led Federal Government, which he said had not offered the people anything good in terms of leadership and development since they got to office in 2015.

He was joined on the campaign tour of Niger State and the visit to the elder statesman by three-time former minister of Foreign Affairs, Interior and Sports, Alhaji Samaila Sambawa; former Minister of State for Works, Alhaji Saleh Shehu; former member of the House of Representatives, Honourable Jelili Kayode Amusan, and several others.