PDP Governors Divided Over Zoning as Wike, Emmanuel Others Meet

The governors of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, are divided over the issue of zoning the presidential ticket following insistence by the northern members of the party to contest the election.

While the Southern Governors’ Forum, comprising governors under the platform of all political parties in the South has said it’s the turn of the South to contest, advising the north to steer clear, the PDP is being pulled in a directions by some influential members.

PDP members in the North, especially those who have interest in the presidency are insisting on no zoning.

Former Vice President, Mr Atiku Abubakar, former Senate President, Mr Bukola Saraki and current Governor of Sokoto State, Mr Aminu Tambuwal, have indicated interest to contest and have insisted on no zoning in the PDP.

The development has upset southern governors in the PDP, who have agreed to meet to take a stand.

According to a reliable source, the governors including Edo, Delta and Bayelsa will join their counterparts in Rivers and Akwa Ibom to take a stand against the desire of the north to retain power.

Already, the relationship between Tambuwal and Wike has been strained according to credible sources.

Wike is particularly unhappy that a northern candidate in the person of Atiku was supported and sponsored with huge southern resources in 2019.

According to the source, “Wike believes it’s time for Atiku especially to reciprocate the support he received in 2019.

“He got large votes in the South. The whole of South South and south East went for Atiku. South West also voted for him massively,” the governor’s aide said.

He noted that Atiku “was rejected in the North. It was his defeat in the North that cost him the victory.

“Now that it’s the time to show that gesture by supporting a southern candidate, he is busy insisting he will contest. He will destroy the party if he insists on contesting, meaning APC can coast home to victory in 2023.

“He (Atiku) will not be voted for this time even if he forces himself on the PDP. He’s just on a mission to destroy PDP, nothing more. He did that in 2015 that produced President Muhammadu Buhari, and now he’s doing it again,” he said.

A sitting senator from the South South told THE WHISTLER that southern lawmakers too will meet and take a firm position on the matter.

“Southern lawmakers will meet and take a decision supporting southern Governors’ Forum. It’s the turn of the South and nothing more.

“We in the South South will meet separately under PDP caucus and support our zone. It’s just being selfish otherwise those insisting on contesting should have backed down and allowed the South sort out who becomes the candidate of the PDP,” he said during a telephone chat without wanting to be quoted.

Wike had few days ago described party members, especially “those who are saying the presidency should not be zoned”, as agents of the All Progressives Congress.

“Forget about the people saying there should not be zoning. It is just a distraction. For me, those doing that are agents of the APC and they are not helping the party,” he had said.

A senior aide to Governor Udom Emmanuel, who preferred not to be quoted too, told THE WHISTLER that the governor is firmly in support of the larger southern candidate and that zoning remains sacrosanct as far as PDP is concerned.

“There’s zoning in PDP. Anyone saying no zoning is an enemy no matter where he comes from.

“When then president, Mr Goodluck Jonathan, wanted to contest in 2015, the north insisted that it was their turn as late president, Mr Musa Umaru Yara’Adua did not complete his term. Atiku and others joined them and supported Buhari, who in the end defeated Jonathan.

“The members in PDP kicked against Jonathan. Some of these people parading themselves as democrats even left the PDP and helped to create APC but we welcome them back and allowed them contest in 2019.

“Today, they are insisting there’s no zoning and that everyone should be allowed to contest. These people feel this country belongs to them alone.

“Let’s wait and see what the south South governors under PDP will decide because they are the largest financiers of the party. You can sit in Sokoto or Adamawa or Jigawa or Kano without financing the party and come to deny financiers their dues; it won’t work.”

According to a member of the House of Representatives from Edo State, “We in the National Assembly support our governor, his excellency Godwin Obaseki. He has said there’s zoning and the South must take it and that’s it.

“We go by that. They will meet, we will also meet and it’s all for one purpose: southern unity to achieve desired aim,” he said on Thursday morning in a telephone chat.

Already, with the strained relationship between Wike and Tambuwal, there are fears in the PDP that it may signal the begining of the end for the party.

THE WHISTLER contacted the National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Mr Debo Ologun-Agba, for his comment but he failed to pick his calls.