Accept NEC’s Decision On Ayu, Back Atiku, Okowa – PDP Forum Tells Wike

In order to ensure the Peoples Democratic Party’s victory in the 2023 presidential election, a group, the Peoples Democratic Party Reps Aspirants Forum (RAF), has pleaded with Governor Nyesom Wike and his supporters to permit peace to reign in the party.

The group made the appeal on Sunday at a press conference in Abuja, where it also promised to mobilize supporters for the party’s presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, in the 360 federal constituencies.

To address the imbalance in the party’s leadership, Mr. Wike and a few PDP members, including about four governors, have been calling for Iyorchia Ayu, the national chairman, to step down.

They argued that Mr. Ayu, who is also from the north, should resign in order to make room for a southerner to fill the position now that Atiku has emerged as the PDP’s presidential candidate.

According to a Premium Times report, Atiku, a former vice president, chose Governor Ifeanyi Okowa as his running mate rather than the governor of Rivers, who finished second in the election, after defeating Mr. Nyesom and 11 other candidates in the party’s presidential primary election held in May.

Since then, the main opposition party has been mired in crisis as a result of Mr. Wike’s supporters’ demands that the national chairman step down because they believe the governor was betrayed.

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However, at its most recent meeting, the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) gave the national chairman and other members of the national working committee a vote of confidence.

Additionally, Atiku stated last week during a meeting with the PDP’s South-West chapter that while Mr. Ayu’s removal is possible, the party’s constitution, rules, regulations, and procedure must be followed.

Mr. Wike and the other governors in his coalition were chosen to serve on the Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) last Thursday. So far, none of them has objected to their inclusion, as Premium Times reported.

RAF, which is an umbrella body of all House of Representatives aspirants from all states of the federation who aspired but lost out in the recently concluded PDP primary elections across the 360 federal constituencies of the country, asked Wike’s camp to accept the resolution of the NEC.

“Thus we appeal to HE Nyesom Wike to accept the recent resolution of the National Executive Committee (NEC) of our great party reaffirming confidence in the National Chairman of the Party in good faith, no matter how he and his supporters may view the resolution as being at variance with their desires and aspirations. “Democracy demands that we tolerate developments that may be personally disagreeable to us but popular with the majority,” the forum’s National Chairman, Danjuma Muhammad, said.

“We appreciate the efforts and pragmatism shown by HE, Atiku Abubakar and other well-meaning members of the party to dialogue with HE, Gov. Nyesom Wike and his group, and we are urging that this dialogue should continue to be sustained until we achieve consensus and unity in facing the arduous task of dislodging the most incompetent political party in recent memory anywhere in the world from continuing to ruin and endanger the very existence of our country.

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“We want to join our voices to call on HE, Gov. Nyesom Wike and his group that their grievances and demand for fair inclusion are well noted and it is time for them to please sheath their sword. No matter the bitterness, no matter the grievances we are better united under one umbrella to deliver PDP for Nigeria.”

The group reminded Mr Wike that as he repeatedly implied, “it is better to fight in your father’s house because you have the right of claims than to go slave in another man’s house.”

It added, “Not all that glitters is gold! This is a clarion call to services, we owe ourselves, we owe our children, we owe generation yet unborn to act to save Nigeria from sinking. Posterity will judge us not only for our actions, but also for our inaction. Let us all join hands and deliver Atiku and Okowa for Nigeria. Let us return power back to the people.”