As PDP Prepares to Elect National Chairman in August…

Chuks Okocha writes that as the National Executive Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party fixes August, 2024 for the election of a substantive national chairman for the party, former Vice President Atiku Abubukar appears to be losing grip of the control of the party structure  to former governor of Rivers State and current FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike.

Although the 98th National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) directed that it will reconvene on August 15, 2024 to address the issue of substantive national chairman for the party, nothing special will be achieved from the pronouncement.

The NEC meeting in simple layman’s language is a great minus to the political aspiration of former vice president Atiku Abubukar. It is also a pointer to the fact that he had lost any attempt to control the structures of the party.

This is so because before August 15, when a substantive national chairman is expected to emerge, the NEC-in-session had ordered that congresses from the wards, local governments and states in over 24 states must have taken place

This is strange because by August 15 the Congresses and the structures must have been completed with wards, local governments and states congresses already held.

It is perceived that the Acting National Chairman, Ambassador Illya Damagum and some members of the PDP National Working Committee are working for the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike. So, of what value would the state congresses organised by a Wike man be to the Atiku camp?

Though, Wike has repeatedly said he will not contest the 2027 Presidentiial ticket of the party, but his continued holding on to the PDP is to weaken the party. There is a perception within the party that Atiku Abubukar may contest the 2027 presidential ticket of the PDP but he is yet to deny or confirm this position.

So, by shifting the election of a substantive national chairman of PDP to August 15, 2024 when the ward and state congresses must have taken place is to ensure that Atiku does not control any structure and therefore weaken his presidential ambition.

As things are at the moment, the 98th NEC meeting was a victory in the camps of Wike who controls the structures of the party and members of the NWC.

This is why the just concluded NEC meeting could be described as an anti climax, because many believed that the meeting will take a decisive step that could reposition the main opposition party ahead of the politics of 2027.

 Indications of what to come emerged when the governors elected on the platform of the party refused to take a definitive position on the election of a substantive national chairman following the information that Dr Iyorchia Ayu, a former national chairman has withdrawn his suit against his suspension from the court.

When reporters prodded the Chairman of the PDP Governors’ Forum, Senator Bala Mohammed with questions on the fate of the Acting National Chairman, Iliya Damagum, he simply said, “NEC will decide”, but added there won’t be any implosion within the party as the governors are capable of handling any situation that comes its way.

At the national caucus meeting that usually set agenda for the NEC meeting, indications of what to come emerged when the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike was allowed to attend the meeting. By the PDP constitution, Wike is not a member.

Before the actual commencement of the national caucus meeting, there was a meeting presided over by the Chairman  of the PDP Governors’ Forum, Bala Mohammed and by the time the caucus met, the outcome was a mere formality. 

Surprisingly, both Atiku and Wike at the caucus did not say a word.

Political observers blamed Atiku who is currently the leader of the party for not seizing the opportunity of the caucus meeting to show leadership.

As predicted, Wike, continued to maintain an upper hand in the leadership crisis plaguing the party. The caucus ruled that there would be no leadership change. Rather, it directed that the NEC should constitute a reconciliation and disciplinary committee as well as approving the schedules for congresses in 24 states

By refusing for any leadership change, the national caucus approved the  continue stay in office of the acting National Chairman, Illya Umar Damagum.

By this fresh bill of health, Damagum is to continue acting in office till the next NEC meeting.

To this end,  penultimate Thursday’s NEC meeting would have nothing to do with leadership change until the next national convention of the party.

This decision was disclosed by the National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Debo Ologunagba, who said the decision was aimed at ensuring reconciliation and unity in the party.

According to him, the caucus had directed that the party management should set up a discipline and reconciliation committee to reconcile all members.

“NEC meeting will not discuss any change in leaders. Rather, attention is focused on unity and reconciliation.

“Caucus agreed that all congresses in the states and local government should be concluded between June and August this year”, Ologunagba said

But this did not go down well with the Chairman of the party’s Board of Trustees (BOT). Senator Adoulphus Wabara who  said  the acting national chairman, has stayed longer than expected in his acting capacity to the detriment of the north east geo-political zone.

According to him, “The ambiguity surrounding this position has led to confusion and internal strife, hindering our collective efforts to pursue our noble objectives.

“The solutions to these two challenges are clearly imbibed in our party’s constitution but deliberate litigations have made the application of these constitutional solutions impossible.

“It is incumbent upon us to resolve this matter with utmost urgency, guided by transparency, fairness, and the best interests of our party and its members.

“As leaders, we feel the pulse of Nigerians and particularly members of our great party in their demand and quest for direction at this critical time in the life of our party, the PDP and dear nation, Nigeria.”

This position of the PDP BoT may have swayed the NEC to be definitive on the need to replace Damagum, hence the August 15 date for the election or nomination of a substantive national chairman from the northeast zone.

However, political observers are quick to say the coming to office of a substantive national chairman in August may be medicine after death as the main squabbles is the struggle for the structures of the party ahead of the 2027 general election.

The observers opine that the coming to office by a new chairman would have rendered him powerless as the wards, local governments and states congresses of the party must have been completed as the NWC of the party was mandated to complete all the congresses between June and August 2024.

And by implication, all the structures would have been taken over by the Wike Camp.

But a NEC member, Sani Uba disagreed saying when a substantive national chairman notices that there are anomalies in the structures, he could move and restore things in proper order and way of things.

He explained that there are outside influence that expected the party to implode with the just concluded NEC, but the wisdom was that the NEC has approved the constitution of a reconciliation committee that would look into the grievances of some members as well as the perceived anti party activities .

The NEC, he said, could not not have unilaterally suspended or expelled anyone without allowing the person or persons to appear before disciplinary committee to give them fair hearing.

It was for this reason that former Senate president, Dr Bukola Saraki, has  been named as the chairman of the Reconciliation Committee and former Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Emmanuel Udom as the chairman of the Disciplinary Committee.

Saraki is on a familiar track as the party had before now appointed him chairman of the committee that reconciled aggrieved members of the party ahead of the 2019 general poll.

 There are indications also that former deputy national secretary of the party, Emmanuel Agbo, has been  penciled down to replace CID Maduabum as Director General of the PDP Governors’ Forum.

Agbo, alongside five others, had indicated interest to replace Ayu, as national chairman of the party. However, the NEC put off deliberation on Ayu’s replacement until August.

The appointment of Agbo as DG PDP Governors Forum was part of measures to appease the North Central, which prior to the NEC meeting had insisted it must produce the national chairman.

The former DG of the PDP governors forum ,Cyril Maduabum is from the Southeast zone