2023 Presidency: Plot against Atiku thickens

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Despite ongoing aggressive campaign by his foot soldiers to penetrate geopolitical zones, big wigs in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), including former top military brass are said to be opposed to the fresh presidential bid of former vice-president, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar. Atiku; former president of the Senate, Dr Bukola Saraki; former Speaker of the House of Representatives and incumbent governor of Sokoto State, Aminu Tambuwal and former governor of Kano State, Dr Musa Kwankwanso, are among politicians from the North seeking the PDP ticket for 2023 presidential poll. 

Regarded as among the main power brokers in the party since the inception of the PDP in 1998, the ex-military leaders are reportedly pushing for a paradigm shift in the contest for who becomes the standard-bearer of the party. 

Aside from their lieutenants still deeply entrenched in the system, the former leaders also wield an awesome influence along with other power brokers in taking key decisions in the main opposition party. 

At a recent interaction with members of the Strategy and Inter-Party Affairs of the PDP under its chairman, Professor Jerry Gana, at his Hill Top residence in Minna, former military president, Ibrahim Babangida said he and other retired military brass constituted the military wing of the PDP. 

The former military was also quoted to have said the next president should not be above 70 years, just as former President Obasanjo advocated a president with deep knowledge about economy in the next dispensation. 

IBB also said the next president “should be able to communicate because a president should be able to walk into a group of people and talk to them on issues concerning Nigeria; not all the time but most of the time. He must have somebody he knows in every part of the country. It is not a tall order.” 

A former Head of State, General Abdusalami Abubakar, had advocated a young and vibrant president to steer the ship of state in the next dispensation. 

Leaders from the South-East and the South-South have openly criticized Atiku’s move, urging him to reconsider his aspiration for the sake of equity and fairness. 

Those opposed to his ambition claimed he left the party in the cold after it lost the 2019 poll to the All Progressives congress (APC). Others believe the ruling party could reopen some issues that culminated in Atiku’s running battle with some agencies of government in the buildup to the last general election. 

The aspiration of the PDP candidate in the 2019 presidential contest has also reportedly split the ranks of PDP governors, elders in the Board of Trustees (BoT) and some top notch members of the PDP across the geopolitical zones, especially in the southern axis of the country. 

Consequently, the opposition has reportedly united some governors PDP and youthful elements within the party in the attempt to checkmate the former vice president. 

Beyond the argument that he has consistently run for the presidency, they believe the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) was “only waiting for the most auspicious time to latch on a repeat of PDP past mistakes in 2023 on sundry issues.” 

Another plank of those opposed to Atiku is the quest for a younger age bracket for the next president of the country. Similarly, some have kicked against any plot to frustrate power shift from the North to the South in 2023, since incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari is from the North. 

For instance, the pan socio cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide had warned Atiku Abubakar over alleged working against the rotational presidency between the North and South. 

In a statement by its secretary general, Okechukwu Isiguzoro, the body claimed that Atiku’s was capable of creating crisis for the country. 

“Ndigbo has been pushed out of Nigeria based on the fact that owners of Nigeria craftily designed policies and procedures to enslave the people of the southeast politically and economically and only the 2023 Igbo presidency will assuage the perceptions that Igbo are no longer part of Nigeria…. 

“We wish to categorically state that it’s Igbo’s turn to succeed President Buhari in 2023 and Atiku should reciprocate the support Igbos gave him in 2019 and support one of his most trusted Igbo allies for 2023.” 

About a week ago, leaders from the Middle Belt and Southern part of the country insisted on power shift from the North to the South in 2023, since incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari is from the North. 

A statement issued by the leader of the Southern and Middle Belt, Chief Edwin Clark, said power should rotate to the South as the North had ruled the country for 45 years since independence in 1960. 

“By 2023, the North would have ruled for another eight years. It is, therefore, rational and right, to insist that the Presidency should rotate to the south. It does not matter whether the presidency has been produced from the APC or the PDP since 2015. 

“It must be understood that the north has had the Presidency for about 45 years of our nation’s history as an independent country.” 

A former commissioner in Edo state prince Franca Afegbua, who has been voicing his opposition to the latest effort by the former Vice-president to secure the ticket, cited the age factor. He also alleged that Atiku abandoned the party after he lost the 2019 poll. 

“For me, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar should quit his quest for presidency and support a southern Nigerian candidate in the spirit of fairness, equity and justice that will assuage the feelings of stakeholders from the southern part of Nigeria. 

It will be against the run of play and natural justice for any aspirant of Northern extraction to show interest in the 2023 presidential election within the Peoples’ Democratic Party threshold. 

It will offend national sentiments, emotions and logic for anyone from the North to show such interest given our diversities and heterogenous political configurations. 

His bid has also broken the ranks of South-West PDP; while some elders, including BoT members of the party are in support of his fresh bid, a number of other party faithful are aligning with rival contestants for the PDP ticket. 

However, his supporters have moved to counter those forces opposed to Atiku’s aspiration, claiming that he is the only one among the PDP stalwarts that have signified interest in the ticket of the party that can give the APC a good fight at the poll.

According to them, he has the resources and logistics to match the ruling party, as well as structures across the zones to rally support for the PDP to win the presidency in 2023.  (Nigerian Tribune)