Despite stating that he has moved on, the camp of Atiku Abubakar, presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), may have resorted to former President of Nigeria, Goodluck Jonathan as his trump card in his troubleshooting efforts to stay the hands of the G-5, a group of five governors led by Nyesom Wike of Rivers State, from proceeding further in their attempts to scuttle his ambition.
This is against emerging revelations that the former President, might be the source of strength for the group, which emerged after the PDP convention in Abuja in May this year, where Atiku, emerged as the candidate after an intensive contest, where victory was snatched from Wike, who served as Minister under Jonathan, at the last minute.
The Rivers governor, has since teamed up with his colleagues of Benue, Samuel Ortom, Abia, Okezie Ikpeazu, Enugu, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi and Oyo, Seyi Makinde, to withdraw their support for the Atiku campaign on the ground that the National Chairman of the party, Iyorchia Ayu, must not remain in office, as it would be antithetical to the party’s convention that both offices must not come from the same section of the country.
To push his attempt for a truce, the former VP, is reaching out to the former President, through the PDP apparatchik to intervene in the matter and get the dissenting governors and their supporters to backtract on their mission to scuttle his chances.
The PDP team, it is said, would be meeting the former President within the week, in a move aimed at a rapprochement and finding a lasting solution to the crisis.
A former member of the National Working Committee (NWC) of the main opposition party, who is now a prominent figure in the Atiku/Okowa Presidential Campaign Council (PDP-PCC), was quoted as saying that the party was equipped with a credible intelligence that the five governors were sympathetic to the former president.
“We have ample intelligence that these recalcitrant governors are inspired by Jonathan; and this is quite unfortunate. He benefitted from this party and it is bad that he is encouraging Governors Nyesom Wike, Makinde, Ikpeazu, Ugwuanyi and Ortom to behave the way they are doing. He knows these five governors are fighting his cause. We got so convinced about this when the Bauchi Governor, Bala Mohammed, brought in his own angle to it.
“That was unnecessary and we all know that Bala is the closest northern politician to Jonathan, whether in power or not. So, what the party has resolved to do, among others, is to send a powerful delegation to the former President to plead with him to intervene. The delegation is not going to accuse the former President, but to merely plead with him to forgive Atiku, because we already know what is brewing underground.
“That is one of the reasons we cannot afford to appease them perpetually because there is nothing the party does that can satisfy them. So, do we satisfy those in minority and lose the majority? It is a big no. We will forge ahead and win without Wike and his group. “Already, the party’s Board of Trustees (BoT) has tentatively approved that all concerned chapters are fortified with focus on certain personalities who have influence in their various states. And when the time comes, Nigerians will know that the G-5 or whatever you call them, are a powerless minority,” he said.
Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed, had on Monday, demanded an apology from Atiku for not exercising enough trust in him as the vice chairman of the PDP Presidential Campaign Council for North East. As at press time, four of the G5 governors in the meeting were Nyesom Wike Samuel Ortom, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, and Okezie Ikpeazu. Governor Seyi Makinde was, however, absent from the meeting. Wike said they were on a solidarity visit to Mohammed and to also discuss ways they can intervene regarding some challenges surrounding his re-election bid. On his part, Governor Mohammed appreciated the show of concern and said some of the issues as anti-party challenges and treachery in the state. Via Punch
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