The presidential campaign team of Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State has reportedly demanded for thw resignation of the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party.
This is even as the Peoples Democratic Party’s Board of Trustees, (BoT), and National Working Committee, (NWC), is set to meet on Wednesday, August 3, to address the lingering crisis between its presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, and Nyesom Wike, governor of Rivers State.
The chairman of the BoT, Walid Jibrin, stated that the meeting will fast-track ongoing reconciliation process in the party.
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Sources say that State Coordinators of the Wike Presidential Campaign Council, have resolved to among other things, remain in the PDP.
The meeting would be considering demands of the aggrieved Wike-led camp.
The camp after a meeting with Wike, on Sunday, in Abuja, was said to have insisted on the removal of the National Chairman, Iyorchia Ayu so as to enable a Southerner to take over.
According to sources within the party’s national secretariat, Wike’s camp also wants Atiku Abubakar to sign an undertaking that he would spend only one term in office if elected.
Also on the list of demands to be considered by the BoT are that all members of the Wike team will be considered for appointment should the party win the presidential election next year.
The chairman of the BoT, Walid Jibrin, in a statement issued in Abuja, pointed out that Wednesday’s meeting would consider all the outstanding issues in the party and come up with appropriate recommendations.
“The BoT is the highest advisory body and conscience of the party. After the BoT meeting, we will meet with Wike and all aggrieved members and all past presidential aspirants. It is my prayer as Chairman of BoT that the PDP will remain strong to win all elections in 2023,” he said.
“The election of Atiku Abubakar as our presidential candidate and Governor Ifeanyi Okowa as a vice presidential candidate is unnecessarily causing confusion among some PDP members.
“I want to advise all BoT members in the Prof Jerry Gana group to attend the BoT meeting on Wednesday to come out with a common stance of the BoT. After the BoT meeting, we will meet with Atiku, Okowa and Wike to finally resolve the matter to make PDP stronger and very united and enable Atiku and Okowa to win the election hands down.”
Jubril, however, noted that the challenges were not even up to the level of the crisis rocking the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
“I want to assure everyone that all plans are on the ground to bring all members as one and united because what is happening in PDP can never be compared with the situation in APC and their plans to bring the religious issue of Muslim president and vice president.”
Ayu’s resignation has been at the center stage because of an agreement, which requested that Ayu would resign if the presidential candidate of the party come from the North.
Meanwhile, after Atiku emerged the party flag bearer, the song changed to allow Ayu stay in office till the conclusion of the general elections.
However, according to the party’s constitution, the only bodies empowered to cause the removal of the national chairman are the National Executive Committee (NEC) and the National Convention.
It was also gathered that the Iyorchia Ayu-led National Working Committee, NWC, was locked in a meeting in a secret location in Abuja, yesterday, preparatory to a formal meeting at the party secretariat on Wednesday.
Also Wike met with his campaign coordinators at his official residence in Abuja, on Sunday.
Those at the meeting included Governors Wike, Seyi Makinde (Oyo), Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia), Samuel Ortom (Benue) and Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (Enugu).
Others were former governors Donald Duke (Cross River), Gabriel Suswam (Benue), Olusegun Mimiko (Ondo), Seriake Dickson (Bayelsa), and Ibrahim Idris (Kogi) and Jonah Jang (Plateau).
Philip Aduda, Senate minority leader, was also at the meeting with some members of the PDP National Assembly caucus.
