Politics

PDP still searching for elusive amity

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3 years ago

LEON USIGBE writes that the vote of confidence passed Iyorchia Ayu, the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) by its National Executive Committee (NEC), has incensed rather than assuage the group baying for his head, leaving the main opposition in the continues search of amity.

If the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) thought that by passing a vote of confidence in the embattled national chairman of the party, Dr. Iyorchia Ayu, it had settled the lingering crisis threatening to rip the main opposition to pieces, the party highest decision-making personnel are by now scratching their heads as to what more can be done to rein the Governor Nyesom Wike-led group digging in on their demands to see the backs of the former Senate president.

The question that is most prominent in the PDP circles now is, what was the aim of rushing through the vote of confidence when the measure never resolved similar situations in the past? Apart from Solomon Lar, all other PDP national chairmen who had enjoyed a vote of confidence under similar crisis situation still did not survive.

Only four state governors were present in the last NEC meeting, making it one of the least attended in recent times by the state chief executives who are the party’s most critical stakeholders in the absence of a sitting president. The chairman of the Board of Trustees (BoT), Senator Walid Jibrin, resigned during the board’s meeting preceding the NEC meeting, as a gesture of goodwill to what is now known as the Southern Caucus pushing for a re-engineering of the party’s organogram to reflect diversity. Former Senate president, AdolphusWabara, immediately stepped into his shoes, albeit, in acting capacity.

Following that resignation and the confidence vote, the stakeholders parted with the impression that the extant disagreement had been resolved. The presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, expressed the belief that the disagreement is normal and not beyond the party to sort and therefore, no member ought to go out of the party circles in search or solutions. He told the NEC members: “Many speakers have alluded to family disagreement; family disagreements are normal even in normal families as well as political families. But what I can assure you is that we are determined to resolve those issues internally. There are not really fundamental disagreements; it is normal. Today, PDP is the oldest political party in Nigeria from the past republic till today, no political party has existed as long as the PDP.

“As a political party we have our constitution, our rules and our regulations. I want to urge that no matter the level of disagreement, it should be resolved within our constitution, within our rules, within our regulations. We have all what it takes to guide us to continue to nurture this political party, to provide a platform for all Nigerians to realize their collective and individual aspirations. Therefore, I wish to appeal to all members of our party to make sure that all our disagreements are resolved internally.”

Also speaking, Ayu who has been in the centre of the storm, noted that despite the perception outside, the main opposition party remains united and ready to assume power next year because Nigerians are yearning for it.

He said: “…I believe this party is as united as anything in spite of whatever impression other people may want to create. Anybody who is here can see the enthusiasm and the harmony in this party. It is normal to family issues. Sometimes you have family disagreement and we settle. This party is famous for settling all disagreements and going on to win elections in the party. This time is not an exception. I am happy that the majority of Nigerian people are interested in our party and so, because we disagree among ourselves is our capacity to resolve it. We have done it before and I believe the Nigerian people will give us their mandate. We need to focus on what worries the Nigerian people.”

Ayu’s confidence and the hope of all who wanted a speedy resolution of the party’s crisis were shattered moments after his utterances as the principal actor in the drama, Governor NyesomWike of Rivers State, immediately insisted that Jibrin’s resignation is tokenism and not acceptable to the south. He seemed to suggest that it is either Ayu goes or the party kisses the 2023 elections goodbye. It is a situation that has returned the PDP to square one as far as moving forward is concerned against the backdrop of a fast-approaching 2023 general election.

Some people in the party such as former governors Sule Lamido and Babangida Aliyu, have suggested that the PDP standard-bearer can ignore Wike’s group and their tantrums and seek to win the elections with those on his side. But with the benefit of hindsight, particularly over the loss in the 2015 presidential election to the then fledgling opposition blamed on the defection of some of its state governors, others have called for caution if the PDP desires to return to power at the centre. Wike and his group have reiterated their intention to remain in the PDP whatever happens, but there is hardly any cause for joy for the party. What that portends, in the estimation of political watchers, is that the possibility exists for this grroup to trade off PDP’s presidential mandate.

According to observers, the PDP has a choice to make if it is to stand any chance at the polls. There is still uncertainty as to what that choice may be, even more so with the departure to Europe of the party national chairman who is billed to be away for two weeks for undisclosed reasons. Ayu has handed over to the National Deputy Chairman (North), IliyaDamagun, to act in his stead as the party boss amid speculation that anything can happen in his absence. For now, the search for the elusive amity in the main opposition party continues.

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