Tambuwal: PDP Campaign Not Suspended, People Just Trying to Throw Spanner in the Works *South-south governors set up panel of four to meet Rivers colleague *Wike insists refusal to give up party chairmanship to south is recipe for cri
*Wike insists refusal to give up party chairmanship to south is recipe for crisis*Nigerians want a country that works, Atiku campaign maintainsDirector General of the Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Campaign Council and Governor of Sokoto State, Aminu Tambuwal, yesterday, denied reports that the presidential candidate of the party, Atiku Abubakar, had suspended his campaign to appease the aggrieved Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike and allies.
That was as the Atiku-Okowa Presidential Campaign Council said Nigerians were not interested in intra-party wrangling but in how to get the country working again. The Sokoto State governor assured that the campaign team would replicate the kind of scenario it had in Akwa Ibom, where thousands of party supporters turned up for the kick off of the presidential rally.
Meanwhile, the move by the South-south governors to appeal to Wike to sheathe his sword was contained in a communiqué from a meeting of the governors’ forum hosted in Uyo by Emmanuel.Others at the meeting were the past governors of Cross River, Liyel Imoke; Edo State, Lucky Igbinedion; Rivers State, Celestine Omehia; immediate past national chairman of PDP, Uche Secondus; serving and past members of the National Assembly; serving and past members of state assemblies.
“The meeting reviewed recent events in our party, the PDP, and in the country, especially, the dwindling fortunes of the country in the areas of insecurity, economy, unemployment, poverty, inflation, corruption, currency devaluation.” They also frowned on the dwindling fortunes of the country in the areas of security, economy, employment, poverty, inflation, corruption and currency devaluation.Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike warned that the refusal of the PDP leadership to cede the national chairman position to the south was a recipe for crisis.
The Rivers State governor stated, “We have finished presidential primaries, we have a presidential candidate. Is Wike saying, remove presidential candidate? Is Wike saying, remove vice presidential candidate? So, what are you begging me for? All I am saying, and I will continue to say is that you have taken president, give us chairman.
“I’ve accepted the presidential candidate, I have accepted the vice presidential candidate, what’s the problem again? You, fulfil your part. Let the south have something, that is all I’m preaching. You cannot have presidential candidate, national chairman, director general of the campaign.” Thanking the Cross River PDP delegates for the support given to him during the presidential primary, Wike said the visit would spur him to continue to support the party in the ahead of the 2023 general elections.
Ayu, therefore, called on the European Union to send a high-level and large-size observer mission to Nigeria to monitor the 2023 elections, especially, given that Nigeria was a v populous country with large landmass. “In the past, those were areas where the ruling APC did what they love doing best: bringing votes that subverted the will of the people. Even though we are going to police our votes, it’s important that the EU sends a large number of observers ahead of the elections.
Aside Bakken, who is of the Democracy and Electoral Observation Division, , other members of the EU delegation included Frederick Schumman and Kairi Kasmann, both of the European Commission Foreign Policy Instrument. Members of the Exploratory Mission, who arrived Nigeria on October 10 will be on ground till October 25.
The PDP campaign spokesman added that there was no crisis in the PDP but plurality of opinions among members, which was guaranteed in every democratic governance.