Don’t give 2027 presidential ticket to Atiku, George warns PDP
Former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Olabode George, yesterday, called on all stakeholders in the party not to contemplate allowing the former Vice President and presidential candidate of the party in 2015, 2019 and 2023, Atiku Abubakar, to again emerge as the flag bearer in 2027.
George, in a chat with The Guardian, said should that happen, the major opposition party would be trashed in the next presidential poll.
He said Atiku and his cohorts in the PDP had demonstrated enough disrespect to the Southern Nigeria, going by the way they treated the region during PDP’s preparations for the 2023 elections, which ultimately infuriated the G-6 PDP governors led by former Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, and others to work against the interest of their party in the last general poll.
“Atiku does not have the interest of the South at heart and he may possibly not going to be the president of all, if under his supervision the South West was given nothing and he was even courageous enough to say that something would be conceded to South West after the election, which we rejected,” he said.
The former military administrator of Ondo State also said it would be a slap, cheating and complete disrespect to the entire South if a Northerner wins the PDP presidential ticket in 2027. “I can bet you that no reasonable southerner would wholeheartedly campaign for a candidate for the North to emerge President of Nigeria in 2027. I will never do that until 2031 after the South must have completed its eight years.”
As for the 2023 presidential candidate of Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi, the erstwhile deputy national chairman of PDP, said: “I have nothing against Obi; he is from the South but the truth is, the former Anambra State governor can only realise his presidential ambition on the platform of PDP and not the fragmented LP that lacks structure across the 36 states.
“There is no way the present LP can withstand the strength of President Bola Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2027. The only party that has such a taproot, structure and support is the PDP. I also do not believe that Tinubu’s re-election will be easy as people assume. He can only be ousted by the PDP in 2027, if only the leaders of the party do the right thing and are seen to toe the path of fairness, justice and equity.”
George, however, appealed to Wike to have a rethink on his rebellion against the party.
“Though you and others might have been hurt, you should allow the interest of your country to override whatever pains that you have,” he said.
He appealed to all Nigerians, who are seriously feeling the pains of the present economic policies of Tinubu to join forces with the major opposition party, adding: “Nigeria, under the PDP, was not as bad as it is at present. The administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan, which was blackmailed by the APC, was not as bad as what we are going through now.”
The PDP chieftain also raised the alarm that the undue interference of the Federal Government in the politics of Lagos, Rivers and Osun states as well as meddlesomeness in the emirate issue in Kano is an omen that could snowball into national insecurity if caution is not applied.
esides, George said the ultimate solution to the myriad problems confronting Nigeria is to address fundamental flaws in the 1999 Constitution. “Nigeria needs to be restructured to true federalism,” he insisted.
