The Campaign for the 2023 general elections has begun with almost all the 18 registered political parties’ criss-crossing the country soliciting for votes. Of all the parties however, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) seems to have a well-guided political campaign schedule and has been active on the political field since it kick-started its campaign in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State last month. The All Progressives Congress (APC) has just released its campaign time- table while the Labour Party kick-started its campaign in Nasarawa a few days ago.
Despite intensifying their campaigns, three political parties namely, the PDP, African Democratic Congress (ADC) and the Labour Party are still swimming in crisis. The crisis, if not well managed, political observers believe may hinder their success in the 2023 poll.
ADC adamant on suspension of its presidential candidate, Kachikwu
The crisis ravaging the ADC since September, which led to the suspension of its presidential candidate, Mr Dumebi Kachikwu, is yet to abate. The National Chairman of the party, Chief Ralph Nwosu, in an interview with THEWILL, said Kachikwu would not stand for next year’s general election on the platform of the party because he had been expelled from the party.
Nwosu revealed that Kachikwu, who is on INEC’s list of candidates for the February 25, 2023 presidential election, had been discovered to be working as a mole.
“In ADC, we expelled our presidential candidate because we discovered that he was a mole. Our delegates made a grievous mistake by picking a mole to destroy our party. But by the Grace of God, we discovered early and we had to deal with it. We are doing everything possible to bring forth a new presidential candidate. However it goes, we are preparing for the election seriously.
“Yes, his name appeared on the list of candidates for the presidential election released by the INEC. Yes, there is an electoral process. INEC has to do its job according to the electoral law and we have to do our own process, according to our constitution.
“So it is for us to tell our members what happened and to make the general public become aware of our schedule. The law of Nigeria has to take its course and INEC is doing what it is supposed to do, but we have taken our own decision as a party,” he said.
It would be recalled that in September this year, crisis rocked the ADC when Kachikwu and some of the state chairmen of the party attempted to remove Nwosu from office.
Nwosu survived the palace coup and since then all has not been well with the party. The failed attempt to remove him was followed by the appointment of Dr. Mani Ibrahim Ahmed as the party’s new Board of Trustees (BOT) Chairman.
The decision, which was said to have emanated from a resolution of the National Working Committee (NWC) and critical stakeholders’ meeting, followed the suspension of former National Vice Chairman (North East) of the party, Alhaji Ibrahim Manzo.
Nwosu, in a statement, also suspended 17 state chairmen for anti-party activities, denigrating conduct and utterances in contravention of Article 15 of the party constitution.
The affected chairmen include Kingsley Temitope Oggah (Kogi); Kennedy Odion (Edo); Auwal Abba Barde (Gombe); Leader Sampson (Rivers); Johnny Tovie Derek (Bayelsa) and Elias Adikwu (Benue).
Others are Ilesanmi Omolayo Joel (Ekiti); Kabiru Hussaini (Jigawa); Patrick Ambut (Kaduna); Emmanuel Dibia (Delta); Clement Ehigiator (FCT); Alhaji Musa Hassan (Niger); Alaka Godwin William (Nasarawa); Samuel Gyang (Plateau); Bala Suffiayanu (Kebbi); Bello Isiyaku (Sokoto) and Muhammed Khala Jidda (Borno).
Nwosu regretted that although Kachikwu emerged from a free and fair presidential primary, the presidential candidate “has done nothing to show that he is actually prepared to contest the February 25, 2023 election.” He decried “Kachikwu’s attempts to cause confusion in ADC.”
Nwosu assured that ADC would live up to billing as a “truly democratic party and credible alternative to the two other destitute parties that have plunged Nigeria into debt, darkness and insecurity.”
He said, “The attempt to Balkanise our great party is clear evidence of willful mischief by those who are ignorant of ADC’s constitution.“
The ADC constitution, which is also in INEC’s custody, laid down the procedure for changing the party’s leaders.”
“If Mr Kachikwu can operate this way as a mere candidate, he will be a terrible dictator if elected. Nigeria is not a dictatorship, as such a candidate cannot wake up and appoint a caretaker chairman for a political party in the way Kachikwu tried to manipulate the party.
“It is only through a national convention that a substantive national chairman could be elected. However, to avoid chaos and ensure good running of the party, NEC can intervene on any matter to keep the party focused.”
LP, OBidient Movement at War
The Labour Party (LP) and hundreds of support groups backing its presidential candidate, Mr Peter Obi, which make up the “OBidient Movement, are at ‘war’ over the composition of its Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) and funding. There is an indication that they may soon part ways unless a truce is called on time.
The disagreement, it was gathered, may leave the party in pains and Peter Obi’s presidential candidacy in jeopardy.
There were complaints about the composition of the PCC and since it was first constituted on October 12, 2022 and later reconstituted and inaugurated penultimate week. It was also gathered that some Obi’s support groups are still not comfortable with it and they were not happy that they are left out.
Many leaders of the Obi/Datti support groups that travelled to Abuja for the inauguration of the PCC, penultimate Friday, felt disappointed, after they were told by the National Chairman of the party, Julius Abure, to ”go and source funds’ for their immediate needs, such as accommodation and feeding, among other things.
The convener of one of the big groups with presence in many states and local government areas in the southern part of the country are said to be angered by the chairman’s refusal to respond to their request for funding.
It would be recalled that Abure, during the inauguration of the PCC, urged members to go look for funds for the campaign because the presidential candidate did not have the funds to run the campaign alone.
“The presidential candidate of the party cannot fund the presidential contest alone. Therefore, all of us here have the responsibility to solicit funds for the campaign,” Abure said, after the installation of the PCC in Abuja.
On the composition of the PCC, other leaders who spoke to THEWILL pointed out that many of the members were not stakeholders. They said many who had been on the field to make the movement and LP popular indirectly, have been excluded.
Many of the aggrieved people were said to have threatened to pull out of the coalition with the LP and look for other candidates to support in the forthcoming general election.
As a way out of this development, they are insisting on speaking directly with Obi before deciding on the next step.
Speaking on this, the LP spokesperson, Abayomi Arabambi, simply said he was not aware of any crisis,
He said, “In any case, people have the right to ventilate their complaints. But trust Nigerians, people will still complain, even when problems have been solved. But take it from me when I tell you that all is well.”
It was gathered, however, that the Deputy Director-General of Campaign, South, Chief Anagbe Kentebe, prevailed on the feuding groups to calm down and allow party leaders to look into their complaints.
How soon the issue will be resolved is still unknown but there is relative peace in the party for now. If not checked, agitation may derail the party’s scheduled campaign.
Wike, Ortom others Insist on not supporting Atiku
Five PDP Governors , Nyesom Wike of Rivers, Seyi Makinde of Oyo State; Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia State; Samuel Ortom of Benue and Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State have been at ‘war’ with their party, the PDP since Wike was not picked as the vice presidential candidate of the party.
They also demanded equity, fairness and justice in the party by saying that the National Chairman of the Party, Prof Iyorchia Ayu, should step down and be replaced by a southerner, since the presidential candidate of the party, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, is from the North.
The Wike-led team has maintained that they will not campaign for Atiku unless Ayu resigns his position. Despite the intervention of members of the party’s BoT and other leaders of the party, the five governors and their allies have refused to be part of the PDP Presidential Campaign.
Only a few days ago, Governor Samuel Ortom and some elder statesmen in the state, Minda Leaders of Thoughts, have said they had withdrawn their support for Atiku Abubakar over an alleged hate speech and profiling of Benue people.
Ortom accused the PDP candidate of dishonouring him as governor and working against the interest of Benue residents.
Ortom’s rejection was triggered by Atiku’s alleged comments on the recent killings by suspected herdsmen in Benue state.
The governor allegedly claimed that Atiku was working with Miyetti Allah.
Ortom also said Atiku had sidelined him in selecting his presidential campaign team.
Ortom further said, “I am not in his campaign team. The people they appointed there did not get my consent. So I’ll remain on my own. But I’m waiting; when the election comes, we shall vote according to the election.”
Also Wike has said that he will not support his party’s candidate, Atiku in the election because he did not consult him before picking members of his campaign council from Rivers State.
He explained that Atiku’s photograph and that of PDP national chairman, Senator Iyorchia Ayu, had been missing in the party’s campaign materials in the state because they did not want him to campaign for the party at the national level.
Wike, who spoke during the inauguration of the Rivers State PDP Campaign Council in Port Harcourt, said the party’s presidential candidate selected those he described as “enemies of Rivers State” into his campaign council for the 2023 general elections.
The governor said: “Some people have asked me why they don’t see the presidential candidate’s picture and that of the party chairman. I said what are you talking about? The presidential candidate entered my state and picked members of the presidential council without a whole governor of a state having a contribution.
“The presidential candidate entered Rivers State and picked those he wants to pick without the contribution of the governor. So, they said they don’t need me to campaign for them, that they don’t need Rivers people to campaign for them. Will you force yourself?
Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, penultimate Saturday, noted that he would not support the presidential candidate of PDP, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar until the party ensured fairness. He made the remarks during a live interview session broadcast on a radio station in Ibadan.
The governor said that with the achievements recorded by his administration across the four service point areas of education, security, health and economic expansion through agribusiness and infrastructure, he deserved to be re-elected by the people of the state.
Asked about the crisis within the PDP at the national level, Makinde said he would only support Atiku if the party did the needful.
According to him, the party must demonstrate that it can ensure fairness and justice within its system before seeking to implement it in the country.
About the Author
AYO ESAN, has been actively reporting and analyzing political events for different newspapers for over 18 years. He has also successfully covered national and state elections in Nigeria since the inception of this democracy in 1999.
