Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), is currently in talks with five governors of the All Progressives Congress in what appears to be retaliation for the loss of five governors, known as the G-5 (APC).
The Atiku/Okowa presidential campaign organization revealed the news to LEADERSHIP Friday yesterday, claiming that the APC governors who are close to Atiku have been discussing with him how to support him.
The five APC governors are reportedly open to leaving the party because they think Atiku has a more credible platform and more relevant management expertise for Nigeria, according to the PDP campaign staff.
The PDP presidential candidate, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, believes he can try to capitalize on the situation within the PDP where five governors have disassociated themselves from the party's presidential campaign activities unless the PDP national chairman, Dr. Iyorchia Ayu, resigns, according to one of the spokesmen for the PDP campaign team and former national publicity secretary of the party, Kola Ologbondiyan, who gave the hint.
But the opposition party's assertion was quickly refuted by the APC, who labeled it wishful thinking and a sign that they don't have any plans or a distinct strategy for the upcoming general election.
Five PDP governors, including Nyesom Wike (Rivers), Samuel Ortom (Benue), Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia), Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (Enugu), and Seyi Makinde (Oyo), have stated repeatedly that they will not support Atiku's campaign, as noted by LEADERSHIP Friday.
As of now, several of the G-5 governors appear to be leaning toward the APC, with Wike recently endorsing Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State, an APC candidate for governor.
When the APC presidential candidate met with Afenifere leaders in Pa Reuben Fasoranti's home in Akure, Ondo State, Makinde, the governor of Oyo State, openly declared support for Tinubu's presidential ambition through his deputy. The Rivers governor went further and donated money to the APC women's group in Lagos.
Even as he stated that APC governors are speaking with Atiku in front of the 2023 elections, Ologbondiyan told this newspaper that negotiations with the Wike group are still underway.
"As we speak, there are at least five APC governors that are friendly with our candidate and have been conversing with him about the 2023 presidential election," he stated.
"They (the APC governors) are persuaded that Atiku has relevant experience—not simply any experience, as other candidates have suggested. They concur with Atiku's platform as well. They have read his platform and are convinced of both its plausibility and Atiku's ability to carry them out.
When requested to divulge the names of the governors, Ologbondiyan responded that this will happen when it was suitable.
Nigerians will become aware of them when the time is right. We don't want to say who they are right now. But rest certain that Nigerians will see them when the time is right.
They are dispersed across the regions, Ologbondiyan continued, declining to provide more particular information. Nigerians will recognize them, as I said at the proper time.
You Have No Plans and Wishful Thinking, APC
The opposition party in the country, the PDP, lacks preparations and a clear strategy for the upcoming general election, according to the APC, which quickly responded by calling the PDP's accusations wishful thinking.
Barr Felix Morka, the national publicity secretary of the governing party, told LEADERSHIP on Friday that the PDP had been grabbing at straws due to a lack of agenda, springing up a series of lies, from the recent lawsuit it filed against the APC to the present claim that five progressive governors are consulting to support Atiku for the 2023 presidential election.
That's wishful thinking, in Morka's opinion, as it is obvious that they have no strategy for the upcoming elections. They don't have any strategies or plans. Five APC governors are being discussed after they just filed a lawsuit.
"Clearly, then, that is not a campaign platform for an election, nor does it represent a party that is committed to seeking the presidency. They are just grasping at straws and hoping to catch hold of something with a path, but this is all pure wishful thinking. There is no use in reacting to it.
The APC spokesman reiterated his earlier position that the PDP is engaged in a "phantom and fruitless expedition" as a result of the legal action and the current allegations that an APC governor is romancing Atiku. He also reiterated that the PDP is mired in a sea of internal conflicts.
"Once more, that's the PDP embarking on a fictitious and foolish adventure. It is clear that the PDP is correctly convinced that its 2023 engagement was unsuccessful. The PDP has resorted to grasping at straws and making a mess of the sand in an attempt to break out of its own inconsistencies and unsolvable crises.
"It reveals the total lack of competitive confidence and tremendous desperation to face 2023. To be clear, the PDP won't receive any political manna from above. They need to get out of their drunken stupor and start smelling the political coffee, Morka said.
Religion-based politics would destroy Nigeria. Wike Warns
Nyesom Wike, the governor of Rivers State, has meantime encouraged employees of the various security services to refrain from siding with politicians who thwart attempts to preserve life and property by employing all strategies, including religion.
He stated that in order to prevent the country from imploding during the general election campaigns in 2023, Nigerian politicians must likewise put an end to the politics of religion.
When Okon Effiong, the newly appointed police commissioner for the state of Rivers, paid a courtesy visit to the government building in Port Harcourt yesterday, Wike gave a speech.
"We think we owe this country and we also must cease this politics of religion so that we do not spark catastrophe and violence," the governor added. You need to get out and let others know what you can do and what we can provide.
Wike stated that his administration has remained dedicated to safeguarding the lives and property of all State residents.
This is due to its conviction that the people who would use any development projects must feel safe and alive, the speaker continued.
According to the governor, any administration that is unable to do this has failed in its duty and has no business exercising executive authority.
"In my opinion, there cannot be good government without the protection of human life and property," he continued. When there is unrest all over, no one can discuss effective government. You shouldn't discuss government if you can't safeguard your citizens.
"Because if you build a road, someone has to be living to utilize it. People must be living to attend school if you're establishing an excellent school.
"Therefore, it is crucial to remember that you owe your residents the protection of their lives and property. So, for us as a government, serving in office has only one purpose: to accomplish that.
He stressed that because the security agencies are the organizations charged with carrying out these responsibilities, his government has always provided them with the necessary support and will keep doing so in order for them to carry out their security operations in an effective manner.
Wike expressed the expectation that the incoming police chief would use his broad operational and criminal justice knowledge to benefit Rivers State.
Woke made a suggestion that the state government would erect an appropriate police station along Port Harcourt's Ada George Road in recognition of the Inspector General of Police's efforts.
The 43rd police commissioner for Rivers State, Effiong, declared in his speech that he would have a zero-tolerance stance toward crime and criminality.
Campaign Council: Don't Copy and Paste Tinubu's Manifesto
Meanwhile, the APC presidential campaign committee has again refuted allegations made in some circles that the party's nominee, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, copied portions of the late Chief M.K.O. Abiola's Hope 93 manifesto.
Dr. Musa Babayo, who oversees planning, research, and strategy for the Directorate of Tinibu/Shettima campaign organization, argued that Tinubu's hope renewal manifesto is original and not a copy of other documents as the opposition has said.
Speaking during the directorate's opening in Abuja, Babayo said individuals making accusations of plagiarism were doing so to achieve cheap political advantage.
He claims that, in contrast to Abiola's Hope 93 manifesto, which has since been eclipsed by events, Tinubu's manifesto aims to solve the current issues plaguing Nigeria.
"You know politicians have a knack of diverting their audience from the message," the filmmaker said. It's all about management. Planning, coordination, and control are the three fundamental management principles, and I am a qualified manager.
It would exist forever, according to the statement. Nobody will create a new design for anything. Things are always evolving. This manifesto does not contain any copied text. The manifesto is a fresh document that includes some of the enormous difficulties facing the Nigerian state.
In the Hope 93 manifesto, there was no mention of a security issue. The Maradi-Kano rail route was not mentioned in the 1993 hope manifesto. Nigeria in 1993 was not the same as Nigeria now. Soon the second Niger bridge would be opened.
READ ALSO: INEC Swears In 19 Resident Electoral Commissioners
"In 1993, there was nothing like. This is true. I, therefore, wish to completely reject the statement made by the representative of the other campaign organization. We already have an advantage over the competition, therefore they have the right to speak.
And when you are ahead of the competition, you should appreciate those who are behind you and make every effort to reduce your own market share.
Babayo also stated that the 2023 election would be the most significant in the nation's history, but added that Tinubu would win the election.
"It is the most significant election in this nation for a variety of reasons," he concluded.
Currently, the international economy is undergoing a significant transformation. No country in the globe is immune to the global trends in the economy, climate change, and—most significantly—national cohesion.
"This is a ticket that has been misinterpreted; it is a ticket that would improve the country from where it is at the moment. With this election, political identity politics would be eliminated.
0 Comments