In a bid to resolve the crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State has reportedly called for the resignation of the party’s National Chairman, Iyorchia Ayu.
Wike’s Grouse With PDP: Wike has been at loggerheads with the party’s leadership since he lost the PDP presidential primary to Atiku Abubakar in May.
The party’s crisis was deepened further when Atiku rejected Wike’s nomination by the leaders of the party and chose Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State as his running mate for the 2023 presidential election.
Efforts to Resolve Crisis: However, as part of effort to resolve the crisis rocking the party, the opposition party’s Board of Trustees (BoT) is set to meet with Atiku, Okowa and Wike on Wednesday, August 3, 2022.
In a statement on Monday, August 1, 2022, the BoT’s Chairman, Senator Walid Jibrin, said the meeting will hold to resolve the crisis over the nomination of Okowa as the party’s vice presidential candidate by Atiku.
Jibrin said the BoT was worried that the emergence of Atiku and Okowa was causing unnecessary confusion among some PDP members.
He said, “The BoT is meeting on Wednesday, August 3, to address properly the issue by coming up with a strong committee to reconcile all aggrieved members, including Governor Wike.
“After the BoT meeting, we will meet with Atiku, Okowa and Wike to finally resolve the matter to make PDP stronger and very united and enable Atiku and Okowa win the election hands down.”
Wike’s Demands: It would be recalled that on Sunday, July 31, 2022, Wike met with PDP governors and other party stakeholders.
According to Daily Trust, during the meeting, Wike and his supporters demanded the resignation of the party’s National Chairman, Dr Iyorchia Ayu, as part of the conditions to work for Atiku.
The Wike PDP camp also reportedly demanded a written agreement from Atiku on what would be accruing to them should the party win the 2023 elections.
Members of the camp had earlier accused the North of hijacking the party. They argued that the PDP chairman, presidential candidate and BoT chairman are all from the region.
An anonymous member of the group said,“What they are saying is that Ayu has been compromised, he refused to be impartial, he worked solely for the emergence of Atiku Abubakar. That is why some people are saying he should step down for equity.
“The problem is that they are not sure that if Atiku wins, Ayu will agree to step down. So the Wike camp is said to be asking for a written agreement that Ayu will go and what they stand to benefit if the party wins the presidential election.”
Wike is also believed to be angry with his party because he felt betrayed.
It would be recalled that in 2012 Southern Governors agreed that their region should produce the next president, and while the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) zoned it’s presidential ticket to the south, the PDP threw the ticket open and Atiku, a northerner emerged as the party’s presidential candidate.
