PDP Govs Abandoned Atiku Abubakar at Tribunal

By Amina Yahaya

Feelers are beginning to emerge on why Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) governors allegedly  abandoned the party’s presidential candidate in the 2019 general elections, Atiku Abubarkar ,at the Tribunal.

It was gathered that the battle for the soul of the PDP presidential ticket for the 2023 general elections was the major reason why the PDP governors abandoned the former vice President.
Although few of the governors are not happy with the development, a source close to the governors, who spoke with our Correspondent , Disclosed that the governors spearheading this battle are from the North-west, South-South, and South-East.
The source said there was already a struggle to control the PDP Governors and national lawmakers ahead of 2023.

Few of the governors, who are not on their side, source said, have started kicking against the move and have drawn the battle lines to resist the plot to control the governor’s forum and the lawmakers.
The source said the plot was already falling apart, which was the reason why Ndudi Elumelu emerged instead of kingsley Chinda, who was their choice and the choice of the party leadership.
Recall that Elumelu emerged as the minority leader against the wish of the party , which had sent the name Kingsley Chinda to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila.

The source said: “The governors are already controlling the party. They brought their choice for the position of the national chairman and they also wanted to control the national Assembly and the governor’s forum. We will resist this move because we are all stake holders in the PDP family”
The source also said the governors had already put machinery in place to weed out loyalists of Atiku and former Senate President Bukola Saraki.

Specifically the source said governors had sent somebody to the forum to replace the present Director-General, Osaro Onaiwu, who is believed to be loyal to Saraki “but for the intervention of the chairman of the forum and governor of Bayelsa State, Seriake Dickson, they would have carried out their plan”

Fmr. Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki and Earl Osaro Onaiwu at  an event

The Source added that Dickson had disagreed with their plan, asking what was the offence of the present DG of the Forum.
The source further said the plan of the governors was to achieve what they started in 2015 when they threw their weight behind the governor of Sokoto State, Aminu Tambuwal, as against Atiku for the presidential ticket in 2019.
Atiku had eventually emerged as the PDP presidential candidate because of the eleventh hour maneuverings before the party’s primary election in Port Harcourt.
The source said because of this plot, the governors had decided to channel their energy towards executing the plot, hence their nonchalant attitude towards Atiku’s petition at the tribunal.

The source, who said the governors had already zoned the presidential ticket for 2023 presidential election, asked: “When have you ever seen the governors showing solidarity with Atiku at the tribunal?”