PDP Governors Meet Atiku over Choice of Running Mate

Chuks Okocha

As part of consultations to enable him choose his running mate, the PDP presidential candidate,  Atiku Abubakar yesterday met with all the party’s elected governors in Abuja.

 Atiku had on Monday met with the members of the party’s Board of Trustees in Abuja on same issue.

THISDAY gathered that the consultation was to ensure that the person to be chosen as his running mate was acceptable to all stakeholders of the party.

The party almost ran into crisis in 2019, when Peter Obi was chosen as a running mate without much consultations.

In all the meetings so far, like the meeting with the PDP governors, members of the National Working Committee (NWC) were in attendance.

 At the end of the first leg of the meeting, the former vice president was excused out of the meeting.

At the end of the meeting, the chairman of the PDP Governors’ Forum, who is also the governor of Sokoto State, Aminu Tambuwal who addressed journalists confirmed that the meeting was part of consultation to choose a running mate.

 He said:  “It is true that the meeting is partly to strategise on a running mate,” but refused to give further details.

It was learnt that three governors of the party have indicated interest in becoming running mate to Atiku.

A governor who spoke on condition of anonymity told THISDAY that, “Of course you know that the governors of Delta, Rivers and Akwa Ibom have indicated interest, but it is left for the presidential standard bearer to make his mind on the three governors.

“But there is the suggestion that the south-east should be considered and that the governor of Enugu State, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi should be considered. But as I said, it all depends on the presidential candidate 

“The idea of a running mate from the south-east is to give the geo-political zone a sense of belonging because, the zone lost out also in the presidential nomination of the APC.”

Speaking further, the chairman of PDP Governors’ Forum, Tambuwal said that the party’s governors reviewed the last presidential nomination and discussed plans to unite the party and strategise on how to make it formidable for the general election next year and the two off season governorship election in Ekiti and Osun.

All the PDP governors and members of the PDP National Working Committee were in attendance