Why We Prefer Northern Presidential Candidate In 2023 - PDP Members Says

 

Indications emerged on Sunday that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will adopt the report of its commit­tee set up to review why the party lost in the 2019 presidential election and recommend solutions on how the party would return to power in 2023.

The 14-member committee, head­ed by Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State, had recommended that the presidential ticket of the party be thrown open to all regions instead of resorting to a zoning arrangement, a position which has greatly angered Southern stakeholders in the party.

But speaking in a chat with Daily Independent, a chieftain of the party who is a member of the Board of Trustees (BoT), said the party would adopt the committee’s report as there is “a great likelihood that majority of PDP stakeholders want the ticket to be zoned to the North­ern part of the country”. ­

According to him, in the spirit of justice, fairness and fair play, it might be unfair to recollect the South again for the ticket having spent over thirteen years out of PDP’s sixteen-yr reign in energy.

“The committee has completed its activity and it's miles left for the stakeholders to study the guidelines they have got made dispassionately and give you a role, but I can let you know with truth that the file can be undertake­ed.

“They are arguing that rotational presidency is the way to go based at the ar­rangement of the party’s constitution.Fair sufficient, yes, however cur­lease occasions will not make that possible because that arrangement turned into altered in 2010 all through the Yar’Adua presidency.

“Now, the PDP, before we have been driven out in 2015, has spent sixteen years in electricity. Of the sixteen years, the South used thirteen years and some days. Former President Uma­ru Musa Yar’Adua, who took the Northern slot in 2007, most effective spent  years and 25 days earlier than his death.

“His deputy, Goodluck Jonathan, from the Southern a part of the country, finished their tenure and had every other 4 years (which Yar’Adua can also have gotten if he had contested for a second time period).

“With that, the South used 13 years and a few days out of the PDP’s sixteen years’ reign. So, with this explanation, on what grounds will the PDP zone it to the South once more? Logic demands that it is going to the North. Which re­gion produced the ultimate presi­dent and presidential candi­date underneath the PDP earlier than the birthday party misplaced energy? We all are aware of it was the South. That manner, it have to pass back to the North if it's far on the electricity of equity that some Southern stakeholders are canvassing.”

Also speakme, a member of the celebration’s National Work­ing Committee (NWC), who asked now not to be named, said for strategic reasons, the PDP can also want to subject a Northern presidential candidate if it's far critical about returning to power in 2023.

He, but, stated instead of except any region, the birthday party may additionally undertake the com­mittee’s document with the aid of throwing open the ticket to all aspirants from all elements of the u . S . A . In order that the great among them will become the flag bearer of the party.

“I accept as true with that for approach reasons, the PDP cannot af­ford to push the presidency to the South if, indeed, we are critical about returning to energy.

“If the ruling party zones to the South and PDP does the identical, the reality is that the APC will emerge victorious because they already have the threshold as the ruling birthday celebration.

“If the PDP fields a North­ern presidential candidate and the APC fields a south­erner, the PDP may have the gain due to the fact the North has the balloting power and all other indices that matter for the duration of elections. The perception is even that if the PDP fields a Northern presidential candidate, the APC contributors from the North will support him.

“We all know what hap­pened in 2015 whilst the APC fielded President Muham­madu Buhari and a few PDP participants from the North sup­ported and labored for him within the heritage. The PDP is searching out strategic motives to win the 2023 presidential election and, with the aid of so doing, we can’t find the money for to sector to the South.

“But for fairness, we received’t exclude any vicinity, and that is why the committee has de­cided to leave it open.If a famous Southerner wins the primary, then correct luck to him, we can all sup­port him.

“The difficulty is that the Southern PDP members know that they stand no hazard inside the open competi­tion and this is why they're insisting on zoning in order that no Northerner will compete for the price tag with them. All they want is to have it on a platter of gold. I doubt if in order to appear.”

Rivers State governor, Nye­som Wike, at the weekend stated if zoning the PDP presidential ticket to the North will cause the party to win the 2023 gen­eral election, he would sup­port the selection.

The governor, who shared this view at some stage in an inter­view with BBC Pidgin on the Government House, Port Harcourt, defined that the purpose why the PDP had no longer taken a very last selection on whether its presidential can­didate for the 2023 fashionable election have to be from the North or South of the united states is because stakeholders are nevertheless strategizing on the first-class alternatives that might assure the celebration’s victory in the polls.

He said that the PDP turned into eager to take over strength in 2023 and became now not in a rush to present the ruling APC a glimpse of its method to wrest pow­er from it in the next wellknown election.

“I am from the Southern a part of Nigeria. I might be hap­py if power returns to the South, however if PDP will win the 2023 presidential election by way of zoning the presidential ticket to the North, I will not be op­posed to it,” Wike stated.