The presidential primary poll of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has been won and lost with Atiku Abubakar emerging its candidate for the 2023 election. Politics Editor TUNDE JOSHUA examines intrigues that played out during the exercise as well as frills and side attractions that characterised it. Excerpts.
Bookmakers were proved right as the 2019 standard-bearer of the Peoples Democratic Party, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, again picked its ticket for 2023. His victory, however, did not come on a platter of gold and not without a price.
The first runner-up in the contest, Nyesom Wike who scored 237 votes as against Atiku’s 371 actually gave him a run for his money and fame as a veteran in the presidential race.
Opposition to his aspiration and those of other northern aspirants at the very beginning of the contest was spontaneous with renewed calls that PDP should stick to an assumed power rotation or otherwise known as zoning.
Agitation for an Igbo President was strong on the pretext that the South East has never produced a president, hence the influx of politicians of Igbo extractions venturing into the race by picking PDP’s N40 million express of interest and nomination forms.
Leaders of thought in the entire south and middle belt backed the call for South East president, PDP Governors Forum tested on both their Asaba and Lagos declaration to mount insistence on southern president in 2023 and even South East caucus of the PDP Governors Forum toed the line of Igbo presidency.
Aspirants from that South East who bought PDP presidential forms include; former Anambra State governor, Peter Obi, former Senate President, Anyim Pius Anyim, a renowned pharmacist, , Mazi Sam Ohuambuwa, American based medical doctor, Nwachukwu Anakwenze, former Speaker of Abia State Assembly, Rt. Hon. Chikwendu Kalu and Chief. Ugwu Charles Okwudili. Infact, attempts were made by southeast aspirants to produce a consensus candidate but if failed.
They all approached the race on individual strength. A new twist to the call for southern presidency was introduced by Governor Nyesom Wike’s aspiration, followed by Governor Udom Emmanuel, from the south south zone. With the refusal by the party to zone the ticket, the contest became an all comers affairs as former Ekiti governor, Ayodele Fayose from the South West and publisher, Dele Momodu from Edo State joined.
Leading northern aspirants such as former Senate President, Bukol Saraki, Sokoto State governor, Aminu Tambuwal, Bauchi governor, Bala Mohammed and seasoned economist, Mohammed Hayatu – Deen joined forces to produce a northern consensus candidate with the exclusion of Atiku who refused to join the parley.
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Eventually, the consensus drive hit the rock. Lessons to be learnt from the outcome of the PDP primaries include; Ability of the North to speak with one voice In stout defence of the reason why the north should participate in the contest for PDP ticket, the north were united in their claims that the party’s constitution was not specific on zoning as principle of power sharing.
Atiku was reminded of his previous stand on zoning but the north in unison reminded their antagonists that it is expected of the PDP to produce and field s northern candidate after former president Goodluck Jonathan, a southerner. The northern conspiracy theory also include the excuse that PDP should rather focus on competence and not geopolitical leaning in chosing it’s flag bearer.
Tambuwal, Bala Mohammed, Atiku, Saraki, Hayatu – Deen, all canvassed this position at different fora during their consultation tours across the country. Few hours to the Satuday’s convention, northern leaders of the party in a last minute horse trading settled for Atiku and implored others to support him.
They believed that a combined strength of northern aspirants is what was needed to stave off threats by Wike. Though Saraki and Bala Mohammed refused this position, Tambuwal stepped down for Atiku few minutes to commencement of voting and it yielded results as delegates from Sokoto and his North West support based cast their votes for Atiku.
The Southern Hypocrisy Voting pattern at the primary clearly showed the hypocrisy of calls for Igbo presidency. Given the fact that Peter Obi left the PDP few days before the convention and Anakwenze’s withdrawal on the morning of the primary, votes recorded by the south east aspirants who went into the contest does not show the readiness of Igbo for presidency.
The leading Igbo aspirant in the race, Pius Anyim scored just 14 votes in an election where Abia State has 17 delegates, Enugu 16 delegates, Anambra 21delegates, though 20 voted, Imo 24 delegates and Ebonyi 13 delegates. Another aspirant from the zone, Sam Ohuambuwa scored just a vote while both Kalu and Okwudili recorded no vote at all.
Finding by The Trumpet revealed that south east delegates gave their votes to either Atiku or Wike. Governors of Abia and Enugu are die- hard followers of Atiku while delegates from states without PDP governor were influenced by the dollar power of Wike to deny fellow Ndigbo chances to win.the primary.
It sound absurd that Fayose did not score a single vote in an election where Ekiti State has 16 delegates. All the 16 votes went to Wike who it was learnt sponsored the former governor in the race.
This put to question, the seriousness of the agitation for Igbo presidency. Fluke agitation for Women Empower ment in politics Women politicians, wife of political office holders and feminist activists have cried up to the high heavens on the need to accord women concession in political powers.
But the voting pattern of the few women delegates at the convention showed that agitators still have a lot of enlightenment to do to change mindsets of women not to sell women opportunities for money.
The only female aspirant, Tariela Diana Olivier scored just a vote in an election that about 50 women delegates participated. Others have voted according to the direction of the governors and leaders while others submitted to monetary gains. Fake ethnic chauvinism At the convention, it was discovered that ethnic agitation in some quarters is just fake campaign.
With the level of stigmatization of the Fulani tribe due to happenings in the country, one would expect that southern aspirants like Wike , Emmanuel, Anyim and the rest will carry the day but it goes to Atiku, a Fulani man from Adamawa State.
Atiku’s vote cut across the Yorubaland, Igboland and the South South apart from the northern states while Saraki and Wike got votes outside their geopolitical zones. This attest to the fact that Nigerian politics has gone beyond tribal, ethnic or religious sentiments .
