PDP Confronts More Daunting Hurdles

CICERO/Issue

Granted, the recently conducted National Convention of the Peoples Democratic Party was successful and met the threshold of a rancour-free political ritual. Paul Obi, however, writes that beyond the euphoria, more hurdles and obstacles lay in wait for the party that has become more confident of taking over power from the All Progressives Congress in 2023

More than six years after the ascension to power by the All Progressives Congress (APC), the economy is in a dead trap.

While the naira has plummeted for the worst, unity has nosedive, with ethnic divisions, and nepotism nearing state craft.

Insecurity and terrorists’ cells have quadrupled, threatening even Abuja, the Nigeria’s capital.

It is this quagmire and daredevil situation that many Nigerians tend to see the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as a rescuing party where hope beckons.

Before the just concluded national convention of the PDP, there was a palpable air of unease, all thanks to the political squabbles ahead of the 2023 presidential poll, and the general election themselves.

Given that the party’s structures often determine the likely presidential flagbearer, much tussle over the control of the party was really at stake and at a critical juncture.

The ding-dong over that tussle was further worsened by the zoning controversy, where party offices were to be zoned between the two regional blocks of North and South; and among the six geopolitical zones of North-west, North-east, North-central, South-west, South-south and South-east.

When the Governor of Enugu State, Hon. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi-led committee finally zoned the office of the National Chairman to the North, there was a sigh of relief among party faithful in the South, who are clamouring for the return of the presidency in 2023, after the eight years of President Muhammadu Buhari.

First, in the North, there was some level of apprehension following the insistence of the party bigwigs to run for the PDP presidential ticket.

In an effort to pacify the contending forces over the 2023 presidential ticket, a caveat was added, which included the fact that all presidential candidates from the six geopolitical zones were at liberty to pursue their presidential ambition.

It also added that should a presidential candidate emerge from the North where there is a new National Chairman, in the person of Senator Iyorchia Ayu, the chairman would have to relinquish his position for the sake of equity.

That said, with the emergence of Ayu, and the eventual consensus arrived at on his choice, an atmosphere of peace took stead, replacing the uncertainty and agitations that dominated the PDP.

With the conclusion of the national convention and the election of 21 new executives, alongside the emergence of a 25-year-old Muhammed Suleiman, whose victory as the National Youth Leader became a social media trend, many observers applauded the PDP for staring the party to some form of stability.

At the venue of the national convention, Eagle Square, Abuja, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar; former Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki; Chairman of PDP Governors Forum and Governor Sokoto State, Aminu Tambuwal; Senate Minority Leader, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, and Governor Ahmadu Fintiri of Adamawa State, were all cock-sure that Nigerians want PDP back to power.

But beyond the hysteria and jubilation about the harmony that occasioned the PDP’s national convention and its outcomes, there are still some hurdles and Achilles heel for the party to confront. In fact, despite the glaring prospects of the party ahead of the 2023 elections, the challenge to PDP’s return to power do not lie with the Nigerian voters.

It lies with the various cascading self-interest, ego-trip and ethnic squabbles among its bigwigs and over which region takes the presidential ticket of the party in 2023.

Atiku had already taken the battle to the centre stage by arguing that the issue or problem has never been about where the President of Nigeria comes from.

At the 94th National Executive Committee (NEC), Atiku maintained that, “there’s no such thing as President of Southern Nigeria, or President of Northern Nigeria. There is only one President, President of Nigeria, for Nigerians and by Nigerians.”

Besides Atiku, other likely presidential contestants like Saraki, Rabiu Kwankwanso; their protegee like Boni Haruna, Hon. Abdul Ningi, and Alhaji Kawu Baraje have made efforts to downplay zoning, enshrined in the PDP’s Constitution. This twist has not gone down well with many party faithful down South, specifically, the South-east geopolitical zone. Although, the likes of former Senate President, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim; and Mao Ohuabunwa have declared their interest to run, there has been a discreet silence on the issue of zoning, or an attempt to counter Northern political juggernaut on the matter.

More worrisome is the fact that the narrative on zoning so far has lacked the depth and clarity expected of an opposition party angling to grab presidential power in less than 16 months’ time. Rather, it has been more of ego, hegemony of dominance; but low on the electoral viability of the would-be presidential candidate and the onerous issue of equity and governance. There have also not been feelers from the PDP on whether the current candidates parading themselves would be accepted by the Nigerian voters who have been hard-pressed by a catastrophic economy and ravaging insecurity. On a whole, it is not certain if PDP would be able to overcome the zoning debacle. The North argues for the presidential ticket in view of its perceived electoral strength; the South clamour for the PDP presidential ticket on the basis of justice and equity. Who then will bell the cat? This is a daunting hurdle for the PDP, indeed.

Added to that, is the role of the incoming National Chairman, Ayu. With his close links to the Atiku’s political machine, will Ayu yield the levers of the PDP to the former Vice President? Will he beckon to the Rivers State Governor, Mr. Nyesom Wike and Governor Samuel Ortom, or put mildly align with the Wike-Ortom political romance? Or tilt to the toga of neutrality for the overall interest of party? What and how will Ayu navigate the PDP is another great political puzzle waiting to be unravelled. How Ayu leads the PDP remains a spin on the clock itself

As the party positioned for a new era, peeping into 2023 elections, the gamut of power under its incoming chairman remains an uphill task. Again, will Ayu bend to the super-imposing influence of the PDP Governors’ Forum? Will he truly be a party man? Also, the question on the lips of many PDP members and Nigerians is: What do Atiku, Tambuwal, Kwankwanso, Wike, Saraki, Peter Obi, Ifeanyi Okowa, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, Anyim, Ohuabunwa really want?

As political maneuvering, gimmicks and intrigues build up after the national convention, Nigeria’s major opposition party is trapped in the highest political puzzle in history. Torn between electoral viability, capacity to win up North and the cry for equity and justice down South, the party’s ability to slip through the cracks of the present political turbulence will be legendary. Its failure will plunge the PDP to monumental chaos. It’s deep blue sea for the PDP; an orchestra whose totems are undefined. A choice between a chaotic slump or a victorious rise. For now, a new tone is set for the PDP. In power, there’s no easy ride. Even staging a comeback is even more precarious. The dice is cast; PDP’s return to power is uncertain, even as regional bickering persists ahead of 2023 presidential election.