Following the Supreme Court’s ruling on Thursday, which upheld President Bola Tinubu’s victory, PDP officials have begun restructuring the party and intend to call a meeting of the 98th National Executive Committee shortly.
On September 8, 2022, Senator Iyorchia Ayu, the PDP’s fired chairman, called the party’s final NEC meeting.
According to information obtained by Sunday OBASANJONEWS24 on Friday, the party leaders were demanding that the NEC meet in order to decide how to proceed and realign the PDP.
It was discovered that the PDP presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, filed a petition in the Presidential Election Petition Court and subsequently in the Supreme Court to contest Tinubu’s victory, which prevented the meeting from taking place earlier.
Atiku’s bid for president was temporarily dashed after he lost both his case before the PEPC on September 6 and his appeal to the Supreme Court on Thursday.
The 98th NEC meeting will take place following appropriate consultation, a senior PDP NWC member who spoke on the record said.
You know you can’t just broadcast a NEC meeting like way, he said. You must confer with stakeholders and go over a number of concerns with them. These problems are many. Prior to the date being announced by the party’s National Working Committee, they must agree on them as well as an appropriate time.
The insider said, “Anytime soon after consultation with the relevant organs of the party,” when asked when the meeting would likely happen.
The source disclosed that the NEC meeting’s agenda would revolve around three primary issues: the creation of a reconciliation committee, a review or assessment committee to investigate the results of the 2023 election, and other matters.
In support of this, Timothy Osadolor, Deputy National Youth Leader and member of the PDP NEC, stated that the time had come for the party to announce the NEC meeting and that the date would be announced in the coming days.
Regarding the future of the party’s acting national chairman, Osadolor stated, “Umar Damagum has done a good job thus far in his role as acting national chairman.” This (national chairmanship job) will be discussed as well when we get together to talk about our party’s challenges, but it is too soon to get specific.
Regarding the fate of former governors Nyesom Wike (Rivers), Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia), Samuel Ortom (Benue), Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (Enugu), and Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, who collectively formed the G-5 group that rebelled against the party leadership during the elections, Osadolor said the group was now history in the party’s records.
Umar Tsauri, the former PDP national secretary, stated that Tinubu would be recognised by the party as Nigeria’s “illegal president.”
Tsauri, who is a member of the NEC, commented, “I don’t know what the current party leadership is up to,” in reference to the necessity for the NWC to announce the NEC meeting. We must give them leverage, but the majority of members agree that meetings are necessary to resolve many issues, as is customary in democracies.
When asked if some of the members would join the All Progressives Congress, the former national secretary of the PDP said, “Let him defect if he wants to.” The bulk of those who are currently in the APC were previously in the PDP. Those who are sincere will always stay with the PDP. We are confident that the majority of those who wish to depart will return before 2026, so they should do so.
Regarding the PDP candidate’s future plans, Daniel Bwala, a spokesman for Atiku’s 2023 Campaign Council, stated that he needed time to recuperate following a taxing election and legal battle.
“Only Atiku can tell you what is next, but we will support whatever decision he makes,” Bwala said, arguing that it was inappropriate to inquire about Atiku’s future plans at this time.
“That is their opinion; the Nigerian constitution has given them such rights,” Atiku responded to those urging him to concentrate on mentoring rather than running for office again.
