By Chuks Okocha
The race for who will emerge the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has entered a new dimension as former vice president, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar; former Governor of Anambra State, Peter Obi; former Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Anyim Pius Anyim and Publisher of Ovation Magazine, Chief Dele Momodu have intensified their respective campaigns.
THISDAY findings showed that their campaigns are channeled towards wooing 3,700 delegates comprising 40 per cent of statutory delegates and 60 per cent of elected delegates from the 740 local government areas and six area councils of the Federal Capital Territory.
The presidential convention of the party is expected to hold in Abuja on May 28th and 29th, with the leading aspirants intensifying their campaigns by meeting the party’s delegates across the country.
Some are also meeting delegates of the party who are former National Working Committee members.
Speaking on his campaigns, the former vice president said: “My consultative trips to Abia and Imo and engagements with PDP leaders and delegates affirm that a deliberate policy of inclusiveness, security and infrastructure will promote entrepreneurship and unleash the full potentials of the people of the states to their benefit and the benefit of the rest of Nigeria.
“I was honoured to have been part of the Atiku Town Hall Meeting earlier today in Abuja. The consensus is that if we can enthrone a regime of security and unity, it will pave the way for the economic policies that will usher in prosperity and economic development to take firm root. Together, we can get it done.”
Commenting after visiting Edo, Delta and Kogi delegates, Saraki said: “My social contract with Nigerians is my plan to begin fixing Nigeria from my very first day in office.
It’s not just talk, it highlights the actionable policies that my administration will embark on.”
However, THISDAY gathered that two of the presidential aspirants, one from the north-east and the other from the north-west are playing high-powered politics having secretly obtained alternate forms to contest gubernatorial election and the senatorial election.
Findings showed that one out of the two presidential aspirants might appear before the screening committee for the governorship election in one of the states in the north-east and the other before that for senatorial election expected this week. The National Organising Secretary of the PDP, Hon Umar Bature is aware this development, THISDAY learnt. The governorship primary of the PDP is expected commence this week.
Reliable sources told THISDAY that it was because of one of the presidential aspirants’ double ambition that made Senator Ibrahim Abdullahi Danbaba who represents Sokoto South in the Senate to defect to the APC.
The senator representing Sokoto South had to defect to the APC to enable him recontest for the senatorial seat a second time.
Senator Danbaba had to defect because he learnt the PDP had allegedly reserved the senatorial ticket for the governor, Aminu Tambuwal, who is also a presidential aspirant.
The source said the National Organising Secretary of the PDP is part of the plan for a presidential aspirant to buy two forms, one as an alternative if he fails to secure the party’s presidential ticket.
A source in the PDP while…
