Politics

Atiku, G-5 reconciliation collapses, PDP presidential candidate dumps Makinde for Adeleke

Published

2 years ago

December 19, 2022

Nyesom Wike and Atiku Abubakar

The hope of a truce between Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar and the aggrieved five governors before next year’s poll has collapsed.

A crucial meeting in Port-Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, between the two sides, which their representatives described as final, broke down following irreconcilable differences.

After the talks broke down, the presidential standard bearer decided to look beyond the aggrieved governors and their allies.

Atiku has replaced Oyo State governor Seyi Makinde with Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke as the Coordinator of his Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) in the Southwest.

A proposal by Adamawa State Governor Ahmadu Fintiri, who represented Atiku, that the yearnings of the G-5, otherwise known as the Integrity Group, will be taken care of after the election, was rejected by the governors, led by Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike.

At the meeting were Samuel Ortom (Benue), Makinde (Oyo), Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia) and Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (Enugu).

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The Adamawa governor had pleaded with his colleagues to make a further sacrifice by focusing more on the election instead of insisting on their conditions for a truce.

The G5 governors and other allies, who had insisted that the national chairman, Senator Iyiocha Ayu, should resign, stood their ground, saying that their core demand was non-negotiable.

Ahead of the presidential primary in Abuja, Ayu had promised to step down if a northerner was picked as flagbearer.

However, the chairman, who reneged on his promise, was backed by Atiku who explained that the provisions of the party constitution on the choice and removal of the chairman should be followed.

A party source said that Wike, who spoke on behalf of G-5, said they would neither participate in the PDP presidential campaigns nor lend any support for Atiku in their respective states ahead of the poll.

According to the source, pleas by Fintiri and other party leaders to the aggrieved governors to sheath their swords and retrace their steps fell on deaf ears.

Also, both sides are bracing up for the reality that PDP will go into the election as a divided house.

The source added: “Both sides, those representing Atiku and the G-5, tended to believe that that may be the last reconciliation meeting aimed at resolving the conflict.

“The only concession that Fintiri could guarantee on behalf of Atiku was that the five governors should wait till when the candidate wins before the national chairman can resign.

“As usual, G-5 rejected the proposal and maintained their ground that Ayu should go.”

Following the breakdown of what looked like a final peace move, the former vice president has decided to continue with his campaigns across the country without the involvement of the Integrity Group.

He has reached out to his old allies in the five states, particularly those who are not on the same page with the aggrieved governors and drafted them to his zonal and state campaign structures.

The change of mobilisation tactics by Atiku has further pitted him against Makinde, Ortom, Ikpeazu, Ugwuanyi and Wike, who have turned the heat on chieftains being recruited by Atiku into his campaign from the respective states

In the Southwest, Atiku has dumped Makinde and opted for Adeleke as regional coordinator.

The source said: “Alhaji Atiku is bypassing Governor Makinde. He has appointed Adeleke as Southwest Campaign Coordinator. Adeleke will coordinate activities in Southwest from Ibadan, Oyo State capital.

“He is also wooing his old friends and other chieftains who are fanatical supporters of the PDP across the six states.”

On what is likely to be Makinde’s next step, the source said: “Governor Makinde is campaigning for a second term.

“He is consolidating his PDP base.”

When contacted, PDP campaign spokesman declined comment.

The Nation

Related Topics:Adeleke Atiku Featured G-5 Makinde

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Politics

Tinubu smashes opposition, four more PDP govs set to decamp

Published

3 hours ago

April 27, 2025

Trends Admin

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu

Tinubu smashes opposition, four more PDP govs set to decamp

President Bola Tinubu’s determined push to weaken opposition ranks appears to be yielding results, with strong indications that four Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governors are set to defect to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

Fresh investigation has revealed that Tinubu, long on the defensive against opposition attacks, has intensified efforts to consolidate power by targeting key figures in rival parties. His moves, insiders said, triggered the current wave of high-profile defections.

While sources within the APC and the Presidency attributed the looming defections to Tinubu’s aggressive political strategy, some opposition figures have accused the President of using inducements and blackmail to lure defectors. The president’s allies, on the other hand, have argued that his leadership style has made the APC increasingly attractive.

Governors Umo Eno (Akwa Ibom), Peter Mbah (Enugu), Abba Yusuf (Kano), and suspended Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara have been named as the next big catches for the ruling party.

“It is not a rumour. It is happening; those four governors – Eno, Mbah, Yusuf and Fubara — are on their way to joining the APC,” a senior party source confirmed.

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Officials at the APC national secretariat in Abuja also corroborated the development, pointing to an aggressive recruitment drive spearheaded by the President and top party leaders.

The anticipated defections come on the heels of last Wednesday’s surprise defection by Delta State Governor Sheriff Oborevwori, his predecessor Ifeanyi Okowa, and the entire PDP structure in the state to the APC. Their move was announced by Senator James Manager after a six-hour meeting at the Government House in Asaba.

Meanwhile, concerns have emerged over the tactics allegedly employed to secure these defections. A senior source cited the alleged Tinubu’s secret meeting with Fubara in London as a possible example of backroom pressure. The meeting reportedly took place at Fubara’s request following his suspension and the declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State.

A source familiar with the situation said, “It was at that meeting that we believed Fubara must have been coaxed into considering the idea of defection as part of the arrangement to return his mandate. We also have reasons to suspect that Governor Eno’s potential move to the APC is linked to his predecessor and godfather’s alleged corruption case with the EFCC.”

Regarding Kano, the source stated that Tinubu had intensified reconciliation efforts between former Governors Abdullahi Ganduje and Rabiu Kwankwaso to pave the way for Yusuf’s defection.

“In the coming days, the news of Abba Yusuf’s defection will be made public because he will officially move to the APC with his mentor. We all know Kano is too big a state for Tinubu to ignore politically,” he added.

Tinubu smashes opposition, four more PDP govs set to decamp

Politics

Obi introduces online registration, ID cards for Obidient

Published

3 hours ago

April 27, 2025

Trends Admin

Peter Obi

Obi introduces online registration, ID cards for Obidient

Peter Obi, former presidential candidate of the Labour Party, has launched an online registration portal and identity cards for members of the Obidient Movement both within Nigeria and among supporters in the diaspora.

The development was announced in a joint statement on Saturday by the National Coordinator of the movement, Dr. Yunusa Tanko, and the Director of Strategic Communications and Media, Nana Kazaure.

According to the statement, the new identity cards will feature a QR code for easy authentication and display the national flag of each holder’s country of residence.

It stated in part: “Obidient registration portal supports Nigerians and fellow Obidients living in the diaspora. You will observe that the ID has a flag on it. For example, if you’re not resident in Nigeria, the top right-hand corner will carry the flag of your country of residence.”

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Highlighting the movement’s emphasis on unity and diversity, the statement added: “That way, we can all witness first-hand the embodying of our spirit of diversity, comradery, and unity and how far-reaching the messaging Obidient Movement is. The OBX is constant on the ID card. The Diasporan and Nigerian cards, all start with the same prefix which is the OBX.”

The statement further explained the functionality of the QR code embedded in the card: “The QR code on the bottom right-hand corner is there to authenticate your card, which can be scanned with any QR scanner such as a smartphone, to give Obidients a secure and confident way of interacting with one another.”

It continued: “So if you choose to support or do business with an Obidient, you can scan the QR code or verify the OBX ID online to confirm that the person is who and what they truly say they are and are who they truly claim to be.”

Obi introduces online registration, ID cards for Obidient

Politics

Tinubu won’t get second term if El-Rufai can mobilise northerners for Obi – Dahiru

Published

1 day ago

April 26, 2025

Trends Admin

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu

Tinubu won’t get second term if El-Rufai can mobilise northerners for Obi – Dahiru

Political analyst and columnist Majeed Dahiru has said that President Bola Tinubu’s administration may end in 2027.

This, he said, was dependent on how former Kaduna State governor Nasir El-Rufai successfully rallies northern political forces behind Labour Party’s Peter Obi.

Dahiru spoke during an appearance on The Morning Brief of the Channels Television, discussing recent opposition alignments and El-Rufai’s strategic relevance ahead of the next general election.

“If I may put it straight. The day El-Rufai decides and can galvanise the opinion moulders in the North to zero in on Peter Obi, for instance, as the candidate, that will be the end of the Tinubu administration,” Dahiru stated.

This came amid ongoing conversations about potential coalitions to unseat the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC). The situation took a new turn on Wednesday when Delta State Governor Sheriff Oborevwori, Deputy Governor Monday Onyeme, and former Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, alongside several PDP officials, defected to the APC.

Dahiru noted the reported resistance from PDP governors to opposition coalition efforts, attributing it to regional loyalty.

“That’s because the PDP governors’ preferred candidate for the next election is President Bola Tinubu of the APC — because of southern solidarity. The bulk of the PDP governors are from the South. One of their own is in power. They can’t work against one of their own. It’s not possible.”

He cited historical examples to underscore the role of regional interests in Nigerian politics.

“In 2003, the AD (Alliance for Democracy) didn’t field a presidential candidate because of Obasanjo. That is the nature of Nigerian politics.

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“When Yar’Adua became president in 2007, a number of ANPP (All Nigeria Peoples Party) governors moved to the PDP. Two governors even married his daughters to gain a footing in the PDP. It has always been like that.”

Dahiru also addressed El-Rufai’s recent departure from the APC to the Social Democratic Party (SDP), attributing it to deeper tensions with the presidency.

“El-Rufai has a grouse against the president — a legitimate grouse — because he worked for the president. Hate him or love him, he has a basis to be angry,” he said.

“He has been working assiduously to undermine the president, particularly in the Muslim North, where he is like the caliph to Buhari. He’s the brainbox of the Muslim North.”

He hinted at a broader political strategy by El-Rufai, possibly involving an endorsement of a candidate from the South, especially the Southeast.

“Let me give him a tip: if he really wants to sit at the back of the president, what he should do — and I think they may already be on that path — is convince the Muslim North to look towards the South for a candidate. Specifically, the Southeast.

“If he’s able to do that — and I know he can; he has the capacity — to shift support to someone like Peter Obi, then that will be the end of the Tinubu administration.”