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Tag: G5 Governors

  • PDP appoints ex-G-5 govs into its national campaign council to deliver Bayelsa, Kogi

    PDP appoints ex-G-5 govs into its national campaign council to deliver Bayelsa, Kogi

    The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has appointed ex-Group of Five (G5) governors into its national campaign councils for the Bayelsa, Imo, and Kogi states governorship election scheduled for November 11, 2023.

    Former Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike-then leader of the G5 governors, whose name appeared in the list of ministerial nominees sent to the Senate by President Bola Tinubu-led All Progressives Congress (APC) government, is one of the 122-member PDP National Campaign Council for Bayelsa State.

    The campaign council is headed by Taraba State Governor, Kefas Agbu, with three other Governors – Seyi Makinde (Oyo), Sheriff Oborovewori (Delta), and Siminalayi Fubara (Rivers), as members.

    Former Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, his Enugu and Abia State counterparts, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi and Okezie Ikpeazu, who were among the aggrieved PDP governors who refused to campaign for the party’s candidate in the 2023 presidential election, Atiku Abubakar, also made the list.

    Ugwuanyi and Ikpeazu will be campaigning for the PDP candidate in the Imo State governorship election, which has Zamfara State governor Lawal Dauda as Chairman. Three other governors, Umo Bassey (Akwa Ibom), Godwin Obaseki (Edo), and Peter Mbah (Enugu), as members.

    Ortom is a member of the party’s campaign council for Kogi State, which is headed by Governor Ademola Adeleke of Osun State. He is assisted by his Plateau State counterpart, Caleb Mutfwang, while Governors Bala Mohammed (Bauchi) and Ahmadu Finitri (Adamawa), are members of the council.
    Wike and his co-travellers were members of the PDP presidential campaign council in 2023, but they refused to work for the party.

    Though he has not officially declared for the ruling party, his acceptance to serve in Tinubu’s cabinet questions his continued loyalty to the PDP.

    The party has not yet taken a decision to discipline its members who worked against its success in the last general elections, but there have been calls that Wike and his group should be eased out of the party.

    The 369-member campaign council, according to release by the PDP National Publicity Secretary Debo Ologunagba, will be inaugurated next week, at the party’s national secretariat.

  • G-5 Governors’ decision can’t affect Atiku’s chances in Oyo – PDP Chieftain

    G-5 Governors’ decision can’t affect Atiku’s chances in Oyo – PDP Chieftain

    Chief Femi Babalola, Chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Oyo State, says decision of the five governors under the aegis of G-5, will not affect chances of Alhaji Abubakar Atiku, the party’s presidential candidate, in the state.

    Babalola told journalists in Ibadan on Monday that Atiku would win convincingly in the state with the efforts he and others have put in place.

    The G-5 governors are: Nyesom Wike of Rivers; Seyi Makinde of Oyo; Samuel Ortom of Benue; Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia and Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu.

    The five governors had vowed not to support Atiku, unless the National Chairman of the party, Sen. Iyorcha Ayu, resign from his position.

    Babalola said that the decision of the five governors could not hold water in the state.

    He said Makinde, who was complaining that President Muhammadu Buhari and Atiku are from the North is also guilty of the same complaint.

    He said that Makinde who is from Ibadan did not see anything wrong that he succeeded the late Abiola Ajimobi of the same Ibadan origin who spent eight years in office.

    “I can assure you that, with the efforts we have put in place so far and the ongoing ones, Makinde’s stance will not affect the fortunes of Atiku in Oyo State, which have been displayed severally.

    “People came out enmasse, party members came out and they were chanting Atiku! Atiku !! Atiku !!! And they said that is the person they wanted in the presence of G5 governors.

    “Atiku will win, members know their own, no matter what. The freedom walk was excellent in turn out, the stance of the party members in the presence of G-5 was also another sign of victory in Oyo State,” he said.

    Babalola said they would not leave any stone unturned, adding that they were working assiduously to compliment the already established acceptability of Atiku in the state.

    “It is like Nigeria is lost somewhere in the moon. When you say something is in the trenches, you know where it is. The state at which we are now is that we don’t know where the country is.

    “As far as I am concerned, we need Atiku, who has done this before. Of all those contesting, he is the one who has done it before. He has been the Vice President for eight years. He has seen it all.

    “That is the kind of person we need now. We don’t need a learner. We don’t need someone that will come in and learn on the job. No. State politics and regional politics are different from the national politics.

    “We have other zones in Oyo State; We have people from Ogbomoso, Ibarapa and Oke-Ogun. So, why should it be an Ibadan man, replacing another Ibadan man?

    “He didn’t see anything wrong there then. So, what I am saying is that he who comes to equity must come with clean hands.

    “If he had kept a principled stand then, me, Femi Babalola, will support him, that yes, this is what this guy stood for in 2019; so, we are ready to support him,” he said.

  • 2023 countdown (5): PDP-G5 boastful, yet fearful – By Ehichioya Ezomon

    2023 countdown (5): PDP-G5 boastful, yet fearful – By Ehichioya Ezomon

    Twenty-seven days to the February 25 presidential election, the Peoples Democratic Party hasn’t found a common ground with its five governors opposed to the National Chairman Iyiorcha Ayu.

    The PDP-G5 – chaired by Benue State Governor Samuel Ortom, and headed by Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike – have made Ayu’s resignation a condition for joining the Presidential Campaign Council, to canvass votes for candidate Atiku Abubakar and running mate Ifeanyi Okowa at the poll.

    Even as the Atiku-Okowa campaign has “moved on” with the electioneering, the absence of the PDP-G5 in the process is glaring.

    They’ve abstained from the Atiku-Okowa campain trail nationwide, and at rallies held in their states.

    And Wike’s sustained a rhetoric of running down, and predicting poll defeat for the Atiku-Okowa ticket without his rebel group’s backing.

    On October 14, 2022, Wike stated that the PDP had won some states in general and off-season polls due to his financial support.

    “I have supported many states, financially, to win elections in the past, including Plateau, Ondo and Cross River, and they cannot deny it,” Wike said at a press conference in Port Harcourt, Rivers capital city.

    “If I leave the party today, the PDP cannot win the (general) election. If the five PDP governors say they are leaving today… we are not just ordinary governors, we are very committed and strong,” Wike said.

    “There is nobody that wants to win an election and still continues the way they (PDP leadership) are doing,” Wike added.

    Wike and Abia State Governor Okezie Ikpeazu, Benue Governor Ortom, Enugu Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi and Oyo Governor Seyi Makinde have excluded the Atiku-Okowa ticket in the campaigns for candidates for governor and federal and state legislative seats in their respective states.

    Ortom’s even raised the bar by adopting the Labour Party candidate, Peter Obi and his joint ticket holder, Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, for the presidential poll.

    Although Ortom’s said he couldn’t join the Obi-Datti campaign train because he’s a member of the PDP, he’s used every opportune moment to recommend the LP ticket.

    Ortom was quick to back former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s adoption of the Obi-Datti ticket in a viral letter to Nigerian youths on New Year Day.

    Other PDP-G5 governors haven’t gone the Ortom route, but Wike’s put the PDP and the Atiku-Okowa campaign on tenterhooks, as he blows hot and cold – that the time is running out for the party.

    Arguably, both sides – the PDP and Atiku-Okowa campaign versus the PDP-5G – are in a fix, and that’s why a blistering and blustering Wike and others are hesitant to even go half as Ortom’s done.

    The governors can’t go for broke and adopt Obi, the All Progressives Congress candidate, Bola Ahmed Tinubu or the New Nigeria Peoples Party candidate, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, to avoid disruption of elections in their states.

    If Wike adopts Obi, Tinubu or Kwankwaso, and their party wins the presidential poll in Rivers, won’t a bandwagon effect occur in the March 11 governorship and House of Assembly election in Rivers?

    Will Wike – spoiling for a fight to install his successor – be able to swing election for his candidates on the platform of the PDP?

    A similar scenario may play out in the four states of Abia, Benue, Enugu and Oyo if the governors were to back Obi, Tinubu or Kwankwaso, with dire outcomes for their own candidacies.

    Makinde bids for re-election as governor, while the trio of Ikpeazu, Ugwuanyi and Ortom vie for senate seats in the National Assembly.

    Backing a ticket other than the Atiku-Okowa ticket isn’t a wise decision unless the PDP-5G are certain that voters can split votes for president and other positions on the same or different platforms.

    This dilemma is pronounced in Rivers and Oyo where prominent members of the PDP are opposed to Wike and Makinde’s stand against the Atiku-Okowa ticket.

    The “opposition” figures within the PDP in the two states have vowed to stand by and vote for the Atiku-Okowa ticket on February 25.

    Yet, the PDP and Atiku-Okowa campaign walk a thin line, as they hope for a last-minute change of mind by the rebellious governors.

    That accounts for the reported scheduling and/or rescheduling of the PDP campaigns in Benue and Rivers, to enable the governors to host and join in the campaigns.

    Meanwhile, unless the North has decided to vote its own in former Vice President Abubakar, it may be difficult, if not impossible, for the Atiku-Okowa ticket to triumph over a resurgent Tinubu-Kashim Shettima ticket.

    The new spirit in the Tinubu-Shettima ticket is infused by President Muhammadu Buhari’s restated resolve to campagn for all the APC candidates, to secure victory at the general election.

    Within one week of that avowal, Buhari’s rallied in Adamawa (Atiku’s home state), Yobe and Bauchi – all in the North-East considered as Atiku’s political turf.

    If the the President – also expected to campaign in Katsina, Zamfara and Kebbi – keeps the schedule and galvanises similar crowds as witnessed in Adamawa, Yobe, Bauchi and Plateau State, the PDP boast of owning majority votes in the North may become a mirage.

    Hence the PDP and Atiku-Okowa ticket need massive votes from Abia, Benue, Enugu, Rivers and Oyo to counter APC’s votes in the North.

    It’s a dicey situation in which Wike and his colleagues seem to hold the aces over an expectant Atiku-Okowa ticket that wants to roll over the rival Tinubu-Shettima, Obi-Datti and Kwankwaso-Isaac Idahosa tickets on February 25.

     

    *Mr Ezomon, Journalist and Media Consultant, writes from Lagos, Nigeria.

  • See why the whole world is laughing at Wike and G5 – By Mideno Bayagbon

    See why the whole world is laughing at Wike and G5 – By Mideno Bayagbon

    Teddy Pendergrass,  it was,  who had the hit song: The Whole Town’s Laughing at Me, the lyrics of which went thus:

    Yeah, I had your love right here

    In the palm of my hands

    And I lost it and I lost it

    Had a love so real, when a man can truly feel

    And I lost it and I lost it

    And maybe if I had spent more time with you

    Maybe then, maybe then you’d still be mine

    Oh and only if I had been just a little more kind to you

    There’d be no need, for the man to be crying

    The whole town’s laughing at me, yes they are

    Silly fool, how’d you lose such a good thing?

    This is the song that comes to mind each time I remember how Governor Nyesom Wike and his gang of five governors and a sprinkling of some political heavyweights in the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, called Integrity Group, have boxed themselves into a quagmire they are finding it difficult to extricate themselves from. And they are beginning to behave like the fake Nigerian prophets who wait for a convenient time and favourable situations to roll out their self–induced prophesies. Faced with an unpalatable reality, disunited with uncommon interests, they are about either choking on, or swallowing their vomits. They are currently in a very uncomfortable place where shame and disgrace are welcoming giants before them. And I laugh in Ikwerre dialect!

    The painful thing is that the man they ganged up against has damned them, dared them  to do their worst. And the entire nation has been waiting for their garrulous and pompous leader, Nyesom Wike, to draw the carpet from off the feet of the Waziri Adamawa, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, their party’s presidential candidate in next month’s presidential elections. They had predicted a tsunami so devastating to the dream of Atiku Abubakar going into the elections, one of the clear favourites, will be a bad dream sadly remembered. But not so have events turned out.

    Governor Wike and the Integrity Group which has as members the Governors of Abia, Enugu, Oyo and Benue; and that of Bauchi who is still doing hide-and-seek with his party, having promoted themselves as the beautiful bride of the 2023 Presidential Elections, have been holding court, indulging in intra and inter-party rascalities and tottering on the verge of pledging their support either to the Emilokan of the All Progressives Congress (APC), the one and only Bola Ahmed Tinubu; or to the trail blazing leader of the Obidient Gang, Peter Obi. Consultations upon consultations, after the many ego trips to London, Paris, Ibadan, Lagos, Benue and Port Harcourt, they are suddenly finding their dream of being the brokers of who emerges the President on February 25th, 2023,  becoming a candle flickering in the wind, its wick sucking in the last wax, before its oxygen is snuffed out, asphyxiated.

    Today, they are a disunited front. Self interest and the quest for their individual political interests have driven a wedge into the supposed unity of the Integrity Group. Three of the Governors, Abia’s Ikpeazu, Enugu’s Ugwuanyi, Benue’s Ortom are pursuing senatorial dreams under the umbrella of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, while Seyi Makinde and Bala Mohammed of Bauchi want to return as governors of Oyo and Bauchi states, respectively. The only one who is not entangled and double crossed by any election blues is Governor Wike and now the WB Yeats’ fabled falcon cannot hear the falconer; and the centre of their unity cannot hold anymore, for they have become a house divided against itself. Disparate self interests have revealed the fowl’s yansh!  Their claim of fighting for the interest of the people of the South against the oppressive moves of the northern cabal in the PDP, it is now clear, is their self interest they have hitherto masqueraded as interest of the people of the South and  the Middlebelt.

    Even at that, the truth remains that for most of them, their ambitions, even without their pitching their tents with Wike in the G5 and later Integrity Group, is in serious jeopardy at home. It will be a miracle for example for Governor Ikpeazu to emerge victorious in his senatorial quest in the Ngwa area of Abia State. Three things stand against him. His poor performance as a two term governor of Abia, the sweeping take over of his state by the Obidient Group, and the fact that he is contesting against a political war veteran, former deputy governor, former senator Enyinnaya Abaribe! As it is, he needs the PDP more than the PDP needs him.

    Same is true of the one they call Gburugburu in Enugu state. For a man who has had a very quiet reign as Governor of Enugu; a man who remained incognito and seemingly inconsequential to national issues and debate, his foray into the G5 and Integrity Group was a major surprise. Like Abia, Enugu has tipped over, falling headlong into the strong grasp of the Obidient Group. For Governor Lawrence Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, the road to a senatorial seat is very rough indeed. Whether he foolishly joins to support Bola Tinubu of APC, a no-starter in Enugu; or selfishly throws his hat into supporting Peter Obi, it will be a hard sell for him to throw his party under the trailer and hope to win the seat.

    Seyi Makinde seems to be realising late that he is between the devil and the deep blue sea. He will either eat the humble pie and go back into the mainstream of the  PDP in the state, which means supporting an Atiku Abubakar presidency and hope for the best or he can continue to seek Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s support while hoping the Jagaban will abandon his own party candidate. He should, by now,know that the political re-engineering in the state means the main stream faction of the party are likely to throw their support for the Accord Party candidate should he follow through his current seemingly foolhardy position. Truth, with position as they currently are in the state, Governor Makinde is with his own hands donating the governorship seat to the All Progressives Congress.

    Samuel Ortom, Governor of Benue State,  might just be luckier than his other colleagues. First, his senatorial zone is likely still going to vote for him despite the Peter Obi movement taking strategic strongholds in the state. His perceived fight against Fulani herdsmen and his smart  alignment with the Obidient Gang might just see him as the only member of the group who might make it to the Senate of the National Assembly.

    The most foolish move Governor Nyesom Wike will make is to declare support for the APC presidential candidate. If he does, it will mean he truly thinks too highly of himself and that he is oblivious to the current position of the people of his state. If he declares his support for Tinubu, he will be roundly disgraced. The APC as a party is decimated in the state. The two strongest parties dominating the politics of the state now are Peter Obi’s Labour Party and the PDP. With the days of writing fictitious elections result gladly in the past, Nyesom Wike has only one option, as a face saving measure, to throw his weight behind Atiku Abubakar or Peter Obi.

    These are the reasons the whole world is laughing at Governor Wike and his gang who have dribbled themselves into a cul de sac. With January ending a few days away, and his end of tenure as a governor, four short months away, Governor Wike must desperately now look for a way to save face.

  • Gov Wike heads to court over dissolution of Ekiti PDP exco

    Gov Wike heads to court over dissolution of Ekiti PDP exco

    Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike has described the dissolution of the Ekiti State executive committee of the People’s Democratic Party by the Iyorchia Ayu led National Working Committee (NWC) of the party as an act of tyranny that he said would be challenged in court.

    The Governor, who dared the PDP national chairman, Ayu to suspend him or any of the G-5 governors, warned that the resort to despotism by the NWC will not do the PDP any good in the forthcoming general elections.

    The Rivers State governor stated this while speaking at the campaign flag-off rally by the State PDP Campaign Council in Bori, Khana Local Government Area on Saturday.

    Governor Wike explained that the reason why the dissolution of the Ekiti State working committee will be challenged in court is because there are still members of the PDP who believe in the rule of law and that the party should respect its constitution.

    “Let me also use this opportunity to say to Iyorchia Ayu and his team, your dissolving Ekiti State Exco will not help you in anyway. Your suspending people will not help you in anyway. The battle line has been fully drawn. As I speak to you, we will do everything legally possible to challenge any decision we know is illegal.

    He stressed that the Ayu led NWC resort to tyranny will do more damage to the PDP as far as the 2023 general election is concerned.

    “So, don’t think you can threaten people by saying so, so persons have been suspended. Rubbish! Completely rubbish. We are above that level that you think you can threaten anybody, intimidate anybody with whatever illegal decision you have taken.”

    The Rivers State governor dared Ayu and his cohorts to extend the despotic tendencies to the G-5 governors and see if they could withstand the repercussion.

    “So, we are waiting for you to announce my own and any other of my friend. Like I have said, when a man says you will not sleep, he too, will he sleep? Will Ayu sleep? Will those his cohorts sleep? So don’t worry, we have the capacity to pay back. We have the capacity to tell you that enough is enough.”

    Governor Wike urged Rivers State electorate in Khana to vote for the PDP governorship candidate, Sir Siminialayi Fubara, as well as all national and legislative candidates in the 2023 general election in order to consolidate on the achievements of his administration.

    The governor cautioned that people not to vote for the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship, Tonye Cole, who is facing criminal charges for his obnoxious role in the sale of Rivers State government assets by Chibuike Amaechi led administration.

    “Some people are shameless. A man who colluded with his master to strip Rivers State of its resources, sold our gas turbines which was constructed, installed by Dr Peter Odili’ administration. It was sold at the cost of $308M. So, we have filed criminal charges against Tonye Cole.”

    The governor described Cole’s claim that all the flyovers constructed by his administration are mainly in Port Harcourt and Obio-Akpor local government areas as hypocritical, since he lives in Port Harcourt.

    “Ask him how many flyovers did his boss, the former Minister do. It shows you he does not know about governance in Rivers State. His mentor told his people that he was going to construct Trans Kalabari road. Did he do it? Today, we are at the verge of commissioning the first phase of the Trans Kalabari road.

    “Again, we have agreed with Julius Berger to dualise from Emohua to Tema junction. So, ask him rather than to siphon Rivers state government money, what did they do. What has he contributed to the people of the State? Nothing.”

    Governor Wike announced that the State government has awarded contract for the reconstruction of internal roads in Bori in fulfilment of his promise during the recent commissioning of the dualisation of the Bori-Kono road.

    Rivers State PDP governorship candidate, Sir. Siminialayi Fubara said the PDP government under governor Wike has performed excellently well.

    It is on that basis, Fubara stated, that the consolidation team is soliciting votes from the electorate in order to engender continuity and consolidate on the gains made already.

    “We are not asking for your votes, for your support without a reason. We are here to ask for your votes because we have performed. Our party has performed, our leader has performed and we are taking up from there. We are not here to say support us because is our own turn, it’s not a business of turn, is a business of performance.”

    The Director General of Rivers PDP Campaign Council, Felix Obuah thanked Khana people for coming out in large number to support the new mission of the party which is to deliver Fubara and his consolidation team.

    On his part, Hon. Dumnamene Deekor stated that there are about 259 political units in Khana and the people are ready to vote massively for Fubara and other candidates of the party.

    President of KAGOTE, Rt. Hon. Emmanuel Deeyaah said in the last 24 years that democracy has endured, Khana people have continued to support the PDP. He stressed that the people will show their voting strength on election because they trust the leadership that has been provided to them.

    Rivers State Chairman of PDP, Ambassador Desmond Akawor presented the candidates of the party to the electorate, soliciting votes for them as he handed the party flags to them.

    Senator Barinada Mpegi spoke on behalf of the candidates and emphasised that we are proud of the Sakpenwa-Bori -Kono Road that has improved mobility and commerce in the area.

  • 2023: Wike, Ortom storm Oyo as Gov Makinde flags off campaign

    2023: Wike, Ortom storm Oyo as Gov Makinde flags off campaign

    Gov. Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, on Thursday pleaded with the state residents to cast their votes for him in the forthcoming governorship election to enable his administration to complete the good work.

    Makinde made the plea at the flagging off ceremony of campaign for his re-election on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    The event was held at the popular Mapo Hall, Ibadan.

    The governor, while thanking and appreciating the people of the state for their supports x-rayed the successes recorded by his administration in different sectors since he came into power in 2019.

    According to him, Oyo State became the sole ownership of Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), Ogbomoso under his government.

    “The Emmanuel Alayande College of Education Oyo, (state-owned) has been upgraded to a university status.

    “We cancelled the payment of N3,000 level in our public primary and secondary schools.

    “Our monthly internally generated revenue was increased from N1.8 billion when we came in to N3.8 billion.

    “In the area of infrastructure, we were able to construct and rehabilitate many roads to link all the zones in the state.

    “On security, we created Amotekun to enhance security of lives and property in addition to support being giving to conventional security agencies in the state,” he said.

    Makinde added that his administration had kept its promises to prompt and regular payment of salaries and pensions since assumption of office.

    He urged the people to give him their votes to enable him to be re-elected so as to continue providing good governance.

    In their separate remarks, the four other of G5 Governors, otherwise known as the Integrity Group, namely Nyesom Wike (Rivers); Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (Enugu); Samuel Ortom (Benue) and Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia), who were present at the rally, urged people of the state to work toward re-election of their colleague, Makinde.

    Ortom described Makinde as a trusted, honest and worthy governor.

    According to him, the Oyo State Governor (Makinde) believes in equity, fairness and justice, which the integrity governors stand for.

    Ortom said that the G-5 Governors were committed to PDP victory in their respective states in the forthcoming general elections.

    Also, Wike, leader of the group, thanked the people of Oyo State for making Makinde available to serve the masses.

    He implored them to sustain the trust and confidence imposed in the governor to enable him to get second term to enable him to continue with the good work.

    Wike said that Makinde would give PDP members in the state update on the presidential candidate to vote for at the appropriate time.

    The highlight of the event was the presentation of PDP flag to each of the candidates contesting for House of Representatives seats, Senate seats and the Governorship seat.

    In his remarks, PDP Deputy National Chairman (South), Taofeek Arapaja, urged all the part members in the state to brace up and work for the success of the party in the forthcoming general elections.

    NAN reports that former Governors of Ekiti and Ondo States, Mr Ayodele Fayose and Olusegun Mimiko respectively, were present at the ceremony.

  • We want you back – Gov Diri tells Wike, Ortom, other G5 Govs

    We want you back – Gov Diri tells Wike, Ortom, other G5 Govs

    Governor of Bayelsa State, Douye Diri has said the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) wants the five aggrieved governors of the party back in its folds.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports Governor Diri said this when he and Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki visited Delta State Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa at Owa Alero in Delta State on Tuesday.

    Diri stressed the PDP wants Nyesom Wike of Rivers, Samuel Ortom of Benue, Seyi Makinde of Oyo, Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia and Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State fully back in the party.

    The Bayelsa Governor said the party was not ruling out discussing with them to persuade them to return, support and work for the victory of the party’s candidate, Atiku Abubakar.

    “We want a united PDP and each time we meet, we focus and discuss the unity. We are not ruling out speaking to our brothers.

    “Even today, we have also discussed the possibility of speaking to them to return to our party. We are calling on our brother-governors to be part of their own party and work in unity with every other person.

    “We still want our brother governors back so we can visit them the way we visited our brother, Governor Okowa who by God’s grace will be the Vice-President of Nigeria,” Governor Diri said.

  • 2023: Atiku will emerge the president without the support of G5 governors – PDP

    2023: Atiku will emerge the president without the support of G5 governors – PDP

    As the 2023 general elections draws  nearer, politicians who are loyal to the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP) Alhaji Atiku Abubakar have  noted that the Waziri of Adamawa will come out tops at the polls, regardless of the position taken by the G5 governors.

    They gave assurance that Atiku will emerge victorious with or without the impact of the G5 governors who have decided to withdraw support for him.

    They added that the solidarity enjoyed by Atiku cut across party lines, noting that the task to rescue Nigeria from “the ills” of the past seven and a half years should be supported by well-meaning Nigerians, irrespective of their religious and political leanings.

    One of the loyalists and the  Director of Strategic Communication, National Election Management Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Campaign Committee, Chief Dele Momodu told newsmen in Abuja that Atiku has a unigue character different from other contestants in the race.

    According to him, there is no contestant as of now that can withstand Atiku Abubakar in the race to Aso Rock in 2023.

    He said “There is no candidate today that can stop Atiku Abubakar from becoming President of Nigeria. None of the candidates has his pedigree, exposure, competence, temperament, and network. He has paid his dues, having staked his life in the growth and development of democracy in Nigeria in the past 29 years. His crowning glory will come in 2023.

    “I heard one of the G5 governors saying yesterday that he will announce his preferred presidential candidate in January. We hope they will announce Atiku but with or without the support of these governors, Atiku is winning the election. He will become the President of Nigeria. This is not rhetoric.

    “Everyone contesting can list thousands of reasons they should be voted for but we need a man who is an expert at job creation, a unifier, a Nigerian that Nigerians can trust. Wherever he is called to share his vision, he goes there no matter how inconvenient it is. Unlike those who run away from town halls, Atiku is always available to speak about the issues. While others attack him, his focus is on the issues. We do hope these candidates will man up to debate him on issues of security, job creation, economy, sports, infrastructure, and what have you,” he said.

    Meanwhile, another loyalist of the PDP candidate, Timothy Osadolor, has said that the Nyesom Wike led G5 governors  are not being taken seriously anymore and as such not posing any threat that could stop Alhaji Atiku from emerging the president come 2023.

     

  • 2023: G-5 governor, Ortom reveals who Nigerians should vote for

    2023: G-5 governor, Ortom reveals who Nigerians should vote for

    One of the G5 governors of the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP) Samuel Ortom of Benue State has charged the people of the country to vote wisely during the forthcoming general elections in the country.

    He urged the people to identify party candidates who have the prospects of helping the country before casting their votes in the coming elections.

    The Benue-born politician made this comment during the signing of the N179.5 billion 2023 appropriation bill into law at the Government House, Makurdi on Thursday.

    Ortom said the election should not be based on political parties but on the ability of the candidates to perform if elected.

    “Though 2023 is pregnant and loaded, we hope that God will see us through all the challenges we are facing.

    “A lot of us are expecting a turnaround, rebranding and refocusing. We as humans have tried but we hope that God himself will rescue us and give us peace, hope and all that will make the coming year enjoyable.

    “Come 2023, let us work hard and vote according to the election and not according to the party.

    “We must know those people who have prospects to help us and the country. Let us be truthful when we sit to consider this and may God direct us”.

    Recall that Ortom, Rivers State Governor, Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu state and Okezie Victor Ikpeazu of Abia are all members of the G5 who are against the candidacy of Alhaji Atiku, Abubakar.

  • Aggrieved governors cannot defect to other parties – PDP

    Aggrieved governors cannot defect to other parties – PDP

    Peoples Democratic Party’s loyalists to its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar have dismissed speculations that Wike and other G5 governors have plans to defect to the All Progressives Congress now or later.

    Sources who are privy to this development mention this to  newsmen in Abuja.

    TheNewsGuru reports that Rivers State governor, Wike and other G5 governors have turned their back at Alhaji Atiku Abubakar citing different reasons for doing so, noting that they will rescind their decision if the incumbent National Chairman, Senator Iyorchia Ayu, was removed.

     

     

    Recall that Wike heads a team known as G5 governors who turned their back at Atiku insisting that the party must respect intra-party zoning arrangement agreed upon by members of the party.

    They claim that if they must support Atiku then Iyiorcha Ayu should be removed from office to have regional balancing within the party.

    In September, the governors and other key stakeholders of the party, including former governors Donald Duke (Cross River), Jonah Jang (Plateau), and Olusegun Mimiko (Ondo) as well as a former Minister of Information, Prof Jerry Gana; a former PDP Board of Trustees Chairman, Chief Bode George, and a host of others resigned their membership of the presidential campaign council in a bid to prevail on Atiku to mount pressure on Ayu to resign.

    However, the former vice president chose to keep his distance, insisting that only Ayu could determine whether to stay on or not.

    Meanwhile, there were insinuations that following the failure of Atiku to heed the counsel of the aggrieved party leaders, Governor Wike had resolved to support the candidacy of Tinubu, believing his chances were brighter than that of the Labour Party candidate, Mr Peter Obi.

    Wike had a few weeks ago said the PDP in Rivers would rally round all candidates for the House of Assembly, National Assembly and governorship elections, adding that until the right thing was done, Atiku remained a loner in the oil-rich state.

    “PDP will win our state. I am not hiding it as far as the governorship, House of Representatives, Senate and state Assembly are concerned. The other one, we have not decided, until the right thing is done,” Wike had said.

    Also, at the commissioning of the Rukpokwu-Igwuruta Link Road located in the Obio-Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers state a fortnight ago, Wike caused panic in the camp of Atiku when he asked the mammoth crowd that came out to witness the event, some troubling questions.

    “Then the other one (presidential election), I will come and tell you where you will vote. All I will tell you is, don’t worry, calm down. Those that I mentioned, make sure you vote for them. Very soon, we will meet at our houses and take a decision about where we are going. You will work for a party that has come to your aid, a party that has brought dividends of democracy,” he added.