*Atiku, Wike, Saraki, Tambuwal are frontrunners
*Northern Elders meet, aim to back one northern aspirant
*APC may shift National Convention as INEC extends deadline for primaries to June 10
Charles Ajunwa in Lagos, Chuks Okocha, Adedayo Akinwale and Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja
After crisscrossing the country for weeks, consulting with delegates and stakeholders, 14 politicians aspiring to be the presidential candidate of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in 2023, will from today face 810 delegates in Abuja who will pick one of them.
Also yesterday, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) extended the deadline for the conduct of party primaries to June 10 from the initial June 3, prompting speculations that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) may shift its Presidential primary election hitherto scheduled for May 29 to 30.
THISDAY learnt that some Northern elders, led by former National Security Adviser, Aliyu Gusau and former governor of Sokoto State, Attahiru Bafarawa, went into a crucial meeting last night, to try and reduce the Northern aspirants to one.
Seventeen persons purchased the nomination and expression of interest forms for the PDP presidential ticket, two were later disqualified by the David Mark led screening committee; while another aspirant (former governor of Anambra State) Peter Obi left the party and opted out of the race. So, 14 aspirants are contesting for the ticket of the PDP today.
The aspirants are former vice president, Atiku Abubakar; former Senate President, Abubakar Bukola Saraki; Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Anyim Pius Anyim; Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed; Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Tambuwal; Akwa Ibom Governor, Emmanuel Udom; boardroom guru, Sam Ohuabunwa; former Managing Director of Nigerian International Bank (NIB), Mohammed Hayatudeen; ex-Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose; Ovation Magazine publisher, Chief Dele Momodu; Olivia Tarela, who is the only female among them, Charles Okwudili and Chikwendu Kalu.
However, the contest this weekend is expected to be a four-horse race involving Atiku, Wike, Saraki and Tambuwal.
The source said the Northern leaders felt Wike was getting stronger and may win the ticket if not checked.
Said the source: “With the departure of Peter Obi, Wike has gained more grounds in the South-east, while the aspirants from the North are divided. The Northern elders felt the only way to stop him was to present a single Northern aspirant at the convention. So, they are working to get two of the top three Northern aspirants to step down.”
Another source added, “If Wike is allowed to win the primary, he can’t win the presidential election. So, he must be stopped.”
The refusal of President Buhari to sign the amended electoral act -Section 84(8) – to allow statutory delegates to vote at primaries, is also a plus for Atiku.
With reduced delegates from the South where the PDP dominates, the new geo-political distribution of the delegates favours Atiku.
In the earlier order, the Southern part of the country has more delegates because the PDP controls more states in the South. But with the exclusion of statutory delegates and with the provision that only elected delegates, one from each local government area, are eligible to vote during today’s convention, there is a shift in the balance of power between the North with more local government areas and the South with less local government areas.
This is where Atiku holds the ace. He is expected to get a bulk of the vote from the Northern delegates.
Atiku’s Strengths are his experience, capacity and competence to address Nigeria’s problems. He also knows Nigeria well enough and can balance the fault lines without crossing the lines.
Atiku’s major weakness remains his never disappearing corruption tag, which mere explanations have refused to clear. There are also questions about his age and health. Above all, he is categorised as part of the old order that brought Nigeria to its knees.
Saraki is also a force to reckon with in today’s contest for PDP’s Presidential ticket. He was former President of the Senate between 2015 and 2019, a platform which availed him an opportunity to sell himself. Unlike many before him, Saraki made the office of the senate president very attractive and also drew attention to the fact that there was so much power and influence in being the nation’s number three citizen.
His days as senate president also showed him off as a dogged fighter, who despite the various traps set in his way, triumphed, defeating the corruption label that his opponents had tried to hang on his neck.
Saraki has shown capacity, competence and has experience also going for him. He clearly understands the issues and at every turn, has always intervened in the Nigerian project, proffering solutions to those knotty national concerns, even as a floor senate member.
Saraki connects more with the youth and is very much in tune with global trends. His zone, the North-central, has been in the trenches for recognition, having been marginalised for many years. They consider now as their time.
Saraki’s major weakness is his state of origin, which is the first factor to count against him. Small Kwara in North-central has always been hard to place, either as a Northern or Southern state, realistically.
Wike is the third leg of today’s four-horse race. He is believed to have also made in-roads into some places in the North. He also understands politics very well, even though his style is crude.
Being governor of an oil rich Rivers State is in itself a lot of advantage.
Wike has a lot of cash to throw around and with money, he has been able to buy loyalties and friends. This also accounts for why his reach transcends Rivers State.
Wike, without a doubt, lacks the character befitting of the office of the president. This is his major weakness: In virtually all his engagements, he throws decorum to the wind and treats his colleagues as if they are subservient. Unmindful of his integrity (if any), Wike is too reckless about his carriage. While he could actually undo many things, because of his money, he hardly can find the requisite support for his aspiration amongst his peers.
Mark: PDP Ready for National Convention
The Chairman of PDP’s National Convention Organising Committee (NCOC), Senator David Mark has assured that arrangements had been made for a hitch-free exercise today.
Addressing members of the committee of the Convention in Abuja ahead of the programme, Mark assured that the exercise would be smooth and transparent.
He told members of the committee to brace up to the challenges to ensure a credible exercise, saying “you must be absolutely transparent.
“If you have any interest or bias for any of the aspirants, you can excuse yourself from this assignment,” he said.
Mark maintained that the stage was set for a hitch-free programme as all logistics, materials and security have been sorted out.
He added: “We are prepared for the exercise, virtually all our delegates have arrived Abuja.”
He said the PDP had a track record of conducting peaceful congresses and conventions over the years, assuring that the outcome of this convention would make the party stronger.
According to Mark, “The PDP has an array of eminently qualified persons to rule Nigeria. We carried out due diligence during our screening. I am confident that whoever emerges from the Convention will reflect the wishes of our party.”
Senator Mark and his committee members also inspected the facilities at the Velodrome, Moshood Abiola Stadium, Abuja, venue of the Convention.
The Party is expected to elect its presidential flag bearer for the 2023 presidential election on Saturday.
Tight Security in Abuja
Ahead of the PDP primary scheduled for May 28 and 29 at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium, the Federal Capital Territory Police Command has announced a robust security arrangement to ensure a hitch-free exercise.
The event is projected to be characterised by a high influx of people into the nation’s capital.
“Consequent upon the above and in a bid to ensure a hitch-free event, the FCT Police Command has designed a robust security arrangement defined by a generous deployment within and without the election ground and to every nook and cranny of the Territory.
“The deployment prioritises the protection of lives and properties of all and sundry by emplacing counter-insurgency measures, maintenance of clear road access, robust stop and search at strategic points around the suburbs and city center, effective crowd control, and intelligence gathering, “it said in a statement.
It said the Commissioner of Police FCT Police Command, CP Babaji Sunday, while briefing the divisional police officers, heads of the various tactical and intelligence units of the command scheduled for the operation, charged them to be effective in discharging their duties with the utmost respect for fundamental human rights.
He, therefore, charged the good people of the FCT to go about the discharge of their lawful duties without the fear of harassment or molestation of any kind from any quarters.
He urged FCT residents to remain vigilant and report any suspicious or abnormal occurrence to the police.
INEC Extends Deadline for Primaries to June 10
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has extended the deadline for the conduct of party primaries to June 10 from the initial June 3.
The commission disclosed this in a statement yesterday, signed by the INEC National Commissioner in Charge of Information and Voter Education, Festus Okoye.
The Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) had requested an extension of the deadline for primaries to June 10.
In a statement after a meeting between IPAC and INEC yesterday, the commission said it had granted the request of political parties to extend the deadline.
Okoye said: “Based on the Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the 2023 General Election, the parties have now pleaded with the Commission to use the six-day period between 4th and 9th June 2022 to conclude outstanding primaries and prepare to upload the list of candidates and their affidavits on the INEC Candidates Nomination Portal.
“The Commission did not schedule any specific activity during this period. The idea is to simply give parties time to compile the list and personal particulars of their nominated candidates before uploading the same to the INEC Candidates Nomination Portal from 10th – 17th June 2022.
“The Commission has decided to allow the request of the political parties, since the six-day period does not conflict with the next scheduled activity which is the submission of the list of nominated candidates or any of the subsequent timelines which remain sacrosanct.”
Okoye said the request was granted in respect of outstanding primaries only without prejudice to those already concluded by political parties, adding that the Commission would not monitor already concluded primaries.
He added: “After the conduct of primaries, the next critical activity for political parties is the online submission of the list of the candidates the party proposes to sponsor which shall be accompanied by an affidavit sworn to by the candidates indicating that they fulfilled all the constitutional requirements for election into the various offices via the INEC Candidates Nomination Portal.
“Political parties are, therefore, advised to ensure that their primaries are free of rancour in order to meet the timelines for the remaining activities embodied in the Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the 2023 General Election.”
PDP: INEC’s Decision Unfair
The PDP yesterday said that the decision of INEC to change the timetable and schedule of primary elections was an unfair move, describing it as shifting the goal post in the middle of the game.
The position of PDP was made by the National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, who said that bowing to pressure was akin to shifting the goalpost in the middle of the game.
It was gathered that the PDP National Working Committee may meet early today to take a holistic position on the shifting of the timetable by INEC.
APC May Postpone Presidential Primary
Following the decision of INEC to give political parties a week’s grace to conduct their primaries, the ruling APC may have decided to postpone its presidential primary initially scheduled to commence on May 29.
According to the timetable and the schedule of activities issued by the ruling party, its presidential primary was scheduled to be held between Sunday May 29 and Monday May 30.
But as at the close of work yesterday, there was no activity to indicate that the ruling party was ready to hold any convention.
A party source told THISDAY yesterday that even without issuing an official statement, the party was going to postpone its special convention as there was no activity to show initially that it would hold.
The source added, “But that is a right guess. The party will surely postpone the convention since INEC has given a week extension. You and I know there was no preparation on the ground initially.”
Though, there was no official statement from the party as at the time of filing this report, it is expected that the ruling party would announce a new date today.
