The Peoples Democratic Party are currently in a dilemma. Its has reportedly thrown open its presidential ticket. In this article, our Head of News, Ufuoma Egbamuno takes a position on how the party can deal with the fallout
In my last piece , I argued that the Presidency of Nigeria should be ceded to the South and my reason was very simple: we’ve witnessed almost seven years of a president from the North.
It doesn’t in any way reflect well on a society that is as multi-cultural and diverse as Nigeria to now have another four years of a president from the same region.
Forget all the noise about competence and capability from the usual quarters, it is just what it is: noise and selfishness.
The persons talking about competence now were the same ones who just about eight years ago, were up in arms against the former president, Goodluck Jonathan, when he, against the alleged agreement, decided to throw his hat in the ring.
But the selfishness and parochial tendencies are not seen in these northern politicians alone.
Many of the people clamouring for a rotation to the South aren’t doing it because they love you and me. They are only doing it for their interest.
A lot of them have refused to do the same thing in their respective states. But, that’s a story for another day.
When I wrote this piece early February, I was quite clear why I wasn’t in support of a northern candidate.
— Ufuoma Egbamuno (@Foskolo) March 31, 2022
But I find it really hypocritical that some politicians at the forefront of ZONING today have rejected same thing they are championing.
Why?https://t.co/23eLSvCPxW
Still, I am in total support of a Presidency from the South.
But, if you believe the reports out there, the Peoples Democratic Party has decided against zoning the highest seat in the land to a particular region.
This decision has not gone down well with a lot of people and deservedly so.
Matter of fact, as I write this, I am currently reading a report on Thisday newspaper which suggests that the PDP risks losing huge support in the South if it goes ahead to ratify the decision of the zoning committee.
I agree with this because you can literally feel the mood of most people down South. And this is as a result of the President’s perceived divisive tendencies.
As much as President Buhari has got great strides in terms of infrastructure, all of that pales in comparison with how he has managed the diversity of the country. In this area, he has failed woefully and that’s why the clamour for a president from the South has reached a crescendo.
However, we cannot also rule out the huge possibility that the PDP’s best chance of beating the ruling party in 2023 is a northern candidate.
Let me narrow it down specifically: of all the northern aspirants jostling for the PDP’s ticket, one man stands tall – Atiku Abubakar.
He couldn’t garner enough votes in the north in 2019, some may argue.
No, he didn’t.
But there’s no politician alive today, who can get the kind of numbers President Buhari got in the North not just in 2015 and 2019, but also the three times he tried and lost.
Crucially, President Buhari will not be on the ballot come 2023. That throws a lot into the equation.
So, for a country that largely still votes on ethnicity and tribal sentiments, who is better placed to garner northern votes?
Atiku is a political juggernaut and as I said in my earlier column, he and APC’s Bola Tinubu are the only two politicians in Nigeria today, who have the name, wealth and connections to be Nigeria’s president.
My sources tell me the former vice president already has the PDP machinery in at least 20 states of the federation under his control. It is this same machinery that will produce the delegates that will vote during the primaries.
What that invariably means, is that if the PDP does not zone the Presidency to the South and instead throws it open, it won’t just be a matter of if, but when Atiku will get the PDP ticket.
For a man who contested the Presidency this time 30 years ago and has tried at least four times before, he has almost all it takes to get his life-long ambition (no offence, Tinubu).
So, if he gets the ticket as I believe he will, what should he and the PDP do to assuage Southern voters who will obviously not be pleased with the outcome?
I’d say, tell Nigerians he will only serve one term and pick a Southern candidate, possibly former Anambra governor, Peter Obi as his vice.
If this is done, and the PDP wins next year, it automatically means an Igbo man will have a great chance of becoming president come 2027.
While this may not sway everyone, it will go a long way to convince a lot of Southern voters.
The question now is, will Atiku and the PDP go this route?
