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Stakeholders within the Peoples Democratic Party are pushing for a consensus approach in selecting a new party chairman with former Minister of Information, Professor Jerry Gana, former party chairman, Kawu Baraje and ex-Kaduna State Governor Ahmed Makarfi reportedly among those eyeing the position ahead of the party’s National Convention scheduled for November 15.

Reliable party sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to lack of authorisation to speak on the matter, told The PUNCH that the acting National Chairman, Umar Damagum, was also working to secure the role in a substantive capacity.

At the same time, members of the party’s National Executive Committee called for credible and competent individuals with proven track records to enter the race, though opinion remain divided on the idea of a consensus candidate.

Meanwhile, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, warned that the PDP’s handling of leadership positions in the South-South and South-East regions could jeopardise the success of the upcoming convention in Ibadan, Oyo State.

Reacting to the developments, Bala Ibrahim, Director of Publicity for the ruling All Progressives Congress, said the internal conflicts and personalities in the PDP could signal the party’s collapse at the November convention.

The PDP recently emerged from a prolonged internal crisis that had spanned several months. During the turmoil, a number of key party members defected to the APC and the newly established African Democratic Congress coalition.

In a bid to restructure and reposition, the PDP decided at its 101st NEC meeting on July 24 to convene a National Elective Convention to elect 19 new members into its National Working Committee.

As outlined in the party’s 2027 amended Constitution, Part X, Section 33 (2 – 5J) the functions to include, “The National Convention shall be the supreme and controlling authority of the party within the limits prescribed in this Constitution and it shall be the principal representative, policy making and administering body of the party.

“Except in the exercise of the functions granted only to other bodies as specified in this Constitution or in the regulations made pursuant to the provisions of this Constitution, the National Convention shall have supremacy in all matters pertaining to the party and all officers and organs of the party shall be bound in the exercise of their functions by the decisions of the National Convention.

“The policies of the party derived from the resolutions of the National Convention shall be amended or revoked only by a subsequent resolution of the National Convention. The National Convention shall have and exercise authority to formulate policies and programmes for the party and elect or remove the National Officers of the party.

It added, “ (It shall) demand and receive reports from the National Executive Committee and from any other committees or organs of the party and take appropriate action on such reports, appoint such Committees, as it may deem necessary, desirable or expedient and assign to them such powers and functions as it may deem fit, examine the actions taken or legislation proposed by any government under the party’s control whether Federal, State or Local Government Council and ensure that they are in conformity with the policies and programmes of the party and at all elections, secure the return of as many party candidates as possible in a manner consistent with the laws of the land;

“(It shall) consider reports from the states and local government branches of the party and take such decisions and actions as may be necessary to protect, advance and consolidate the gains and interest of the Party, raise adequate funds for the management and sustenance of the party and exercise control and take disciplinary action against all officers and members of the party.”

The Constitution empowers the National Convention to amend the party’s Constitution and prohibits it from delegating that power.

While the forthcoming convention can perform all key functions listed (except electing a Presidential candidate), The PUNCH reports that the main focus of the November convention is to elect a new National Working Committee to lead the party for the next four years.

Additionally, Part VIII, Section 29 (1A to M), under the heading ‘Establishment and Composition’ provides that, “There shall be a National Working Committee of (1) the party, which shall consist of the National Chairman, two Deputy National Chairmen, the National Secretary, the Deputy National Secretary, the National Treasurer, the National Financial Secretary, the National Organising Secretary, the National Publicity Secretary, the National Auditor, the National Legal Adviser, the National Woman Leader, the National Youth Leader; and the National Vice Chairmen.”

A reliable source told our correspondent that all stakeholders have agreed to hold the convention in November and are pushing for a consensus arrangement.

He stated, “What I can tell you is that we have put machinery in place to ensure the convention holds as planned. After all, the tenure of the current NWC members will expire by December, so there must be an elective convention.

“The zoning of offices will be made known at the next NEC meeting later this month. Some party leaders are advocating for a consensus arrangement for all NWC positions.

“The party is just coming out of a prolonged crisis and cannot afford to enter another, especially with the 2027 elections around the corner. Some of our leaders—senators, governors, former governors, and others have expressed concerns that regardless of the zoning formula, consensus should be adopted at both zonal and national levels to preserve the unity of the party.

“I am sure a decision will be taken on all these soon. Although aspirants are already making moves, Damagum is also reportedly plotting to retain the position as substantive National Chairman. Ultimately, the party leaders and delegates will decide.”

However, another source stated that only a consensus arrangement can prevent the party from slipping into another post-convention crisis.

He stated, “We’re just emerging from a crisis, so it’s crucial to ensure the upcoming convention is peaceful. A consensus arrangement is the best way to achieve that.

“The party has, on several occasions in the past, adopted consensus approaches. Many of us are currently advocating for the same, especially as several individuals are eyeing key positions.

“As things stand — unless zoning disqualifies them or they change their minds Gana, Baraje and Makarfi are interested in leading the party, while Damagum is working to retain his position as substantive National Chairman.

“Therefore, both zoning and consensus will be essential in managing the process and its outcome effectively.”

Attempts by The PUNCH to get responses from Damagum, Makarfi, Baraje and Gana were unsuccessful.

Damagum’s phone was switched off, Baraje’s number was not reachable, Gana’s call was answered by his aide, who explained that he was in a meeting while Makarfi did not respond to messages sent by our correspondent.

Meanwhile, NEC members, including Deputy National Youth Leader Timothy Osadolor, former Deputy Publicity Secretary Diran Odeyemi, and former National Vice Chairman Eddy Olafeso, encouraged capable and eligible party leaders to vie for positions of interest.

Osadolor stated that every party member had the right to contest, adding that adopting a consensus approach could be detrimental to the party.

He stated, “The truth is this, the concern was clearly stated in the country’s constitution, that we have the right to vote and be voted for. There’s no law in the country that says that if you serve one term, you cannot go for a second term.

“And as a matter of fact, conventionally speaking, incumbent people tend to get the right of first refusal before other people. So, regardless of how people feel, how these NWC members feel, they still have individual rights to assert themselves and to convince themselves.

“So, it’s up to the delegates to tell them, ‘you have done well’ or ‘you have not done well.’ Like now, nobody is going to tell the President not to contest, but Nigerians are willing to tell him that he should go home when it comes to the poll. So, if the delegates of the party feel a certain way about any member, including myself, I don’t think you can fight such a process. I believe that democracy should be allowed to flow so that you don’t end the aspirations (of others). And that is why we are going to oppose anyone who tries to truncate this process.”

On consensus, he stated, “Consensus is a dangerous democratic right. Do you want to stifle in the name of consensus? That is even more dangerous. Let anybody who believes he or she is qualified market their manifesto to the delegates, and let delegates at the convention determine who represents the vacancy.

“Therefore, anybody who wants to contest now, to avoid crisis, should also start campaigning. Everybody is from a state, everybody is from a local government, from a ward. So, let there be sensitisation, so that credible people who will not be swayed by pecuniary gains — let such people emerge and be thrown up as delegates. At the end of the day, when they are voting, they will vote along the mood of the party and the country, so that we don’t end up where we are coming from.”

On his part, Odeyemi urged caution and described consensus as the most effective arrangement to safeguard the party.

He stated, “It is too early to throw support behind anyone now, because the party has been in crisis for quite some time. This, obviously, must have raised the stakes and the quality of leadership that it requires to bring the party back on track.

“We are still looking forward to seeing how many of them will come out. I would rather prefer we wait and see all of them before comparing notes and assessing them based on their previous achievements and contributions to the party before we can say anything.

“The Constitution of the party does not ban anybody from contesting. It’s a free-for-all contest. This means it will not preclude former chairmen or people who have previously held the position. But when the time comes, part of what will be assessed should be how successful they were when they were in office. This will be considered at the final stage when all aspirants have come out.

“The party Constitution allows for consensus. I would prefer the consensus opinion of the leadership, especially on zoning and on the personalities they want to occupy the position. This should be based on qualification, determination, previous achievements, commitment to the party, and other necessary qualities.If they are able to achieve that, we can then beat our chest and say, yes, our party is back.”

Also, Olafeso stated that qualified party members were free to contest any position, noting that their competence would be scrutinised by party leaders and delegates.

The former PDP Vice Chairman stated, “The beauty of democracy is that you’re given the chance to compete. But in that competition, people will take into consideration your performance in the past. Your pedigree and your competence will all be in consideration. So nobody should be excused or excluded from participating. Like we said, we want to actually strengthen our internal democracy and ensure that it’s an all-inclusive party activity. They are all welcome.

“But I can tell you that we’re doing everything possible to learn from the past and our mistakes and make the future a lot better for us, so that we can prepare the party, stabilize it for a future competition against the APC and the ruling party that have turned Nigeria into a graveyard of misery and pain for the Nigerian people.”

Olafeso added that adopting a consensus approach would promote stability within the party, adding that they have learned from their previous mistakes.

He stated, “Knowing that we are in the opposition, knowing fully well that we are in the orthodox, it is very critical that we have internal communication amongst ourselves, arriving and ensuring that issues are resolved long before the convention. So, consensus is the way to go.

“And in the event that we are unable to reach that, that is when we throw everything out there to say, ‘okay, let the people decide.’ But I know that we must give consensus a try. It will save cost. It will save all the anxiety and the conflict in the party, and it will make us understand each other better, because consensus is give and take.

“The errors of the past are still haunting us. So, our commitment is to do the right thing in accordance with the constitution of the party and the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“You can be rest assured that we are learning from our mistakes, and we’re doing everything possible to ensure that we come out of this very clean that all those who left can now return. Fairness and equity will be the watchwords today in this circumstance, and we’ll strive to keep doing that.”

In a related development, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has warned that a fresh crisis capable of disrupting the convention could emerge if the NWC continues to reject the newly elected executives from the South-South congress held in Calabar, Cross River State.

Speaking during a media chat on Monday in Abuja, the minister stated that the party acted appropriately by reaffirming Senator Samuel Anyanwu as the substantive National Secretary.

He noted that he had consistently maintained that the party must do the right thing by reinstating a secretary who was duly elected through a convention.

“I never insisted that Senator Anyanwu would be National Secretary. I insisted that the right thing must be done. If the right thing to be done is that Senator Anyanwu should be reaffirmed as National Secretary, so be it, that is what I insisted.

” If the law takes place, so be it. And the law has taken place,” Wike said.

The leadership crisis in the South-South and South-East zones of the party has persisted for some time and the former Governor of Rivers State cautioned that although the party’s crisis appears to be resolved for now, a new wave of conflict could arise if the party refused to acknowledge the zonal congress that elected Chief Dan Orbih as the National Vice Chairman for the South-South.

He said, “Well, it is over for now. There are few things still remaining and I have told them that they must do it. Our congress was held in Calabar, and there’s nothing anybody can tell us. If they want to have another round of crisis, so be it. In that congress, Chief Dan Orbih emerged as National Vice Chairman from the congress. They never wanted the congress to hold. Congress was held.

“The so-called acting National Chairman of the party wrote a letter to INEC after congress was held on Saturday, that the congress has been postponed.

“There is no two ways about it. The National Vice Chairman of PDP South-South, is Chief Dan Orbih. If they don’t agree, that’s another round of crisis.”

Wike also maintained that the party must address the issue of the South-East Zonal Chairman, Ali Odefa, who was expelled from the party following a court order from a competent jurisdiction.

He added, “The South-East vice chairman, Ali Odefa is no longer a member of the party. These are the things I tell people, what I don’t like is impunity. And for someone like me, we will not condone it. I will not allow it. We will fight it except they correct it.”

Wike further warned that the upcoming national convention could descend into crisis if the existing irregularities within the PDP were not addressed.

Wike stated, “They said that they are going for their convention in November. I am not part of it until they have corrected it. Let us wait; there is still time for them to resolve it. Before you talk about convention, resolve the matter. If the matter is not resolved, there will be crisis.”

When contacted, the PDP National Organising Secretary, Umar Bature, confirmed that arrangements had been made for the convention to proceed as scheduled.

In the timetable the sale of Nomination and Expression of Interest forms for national offices is set to commence on Wednesday, September 3, at the Directorate of Finance, National Secretariat, FCT, Abuja.

The timetable, signed by Bature, states that Monday, September 22 is the deadline for the submission of completed Nomination and Expression of Interest forms.

On September 26, the Directorate of Organisation/Mobilisation will begin processing the forms and forwarding them to the Screening Committee, with the screening of all aspirants for national offices scheduled to take place on Tuesday, September 30 at the National Secretariat.

Reacting, the APC Director of Publicity, Bala Ibrahim, stated that the PDP’s November convention would yield no meaningful outcome.

Ibrahim, in an exclusive interview with The PUNCH, stated, “You see, I had forgotten about the name PDP until you reminded me now. But the question is, ‘which of the PDPs?’ There are more than one PDP, and all of them, to the best of my knowledge, are in the Intensive Care Unit of the hospital. I don’t know how a party that is hospitalised, a party that is in the ICU can even contemplate conducting a national convention. It is a dream that is not likely to come to pass. It is a dream that is not likely to see the light of day.

“You see, the PDP should think of putting what it needs to put together to get its soul in one place. As things stand now, it is a fractured party that is moving from one fracas to another and the likelihood of having a peaceful and fruitful convention is not looking good. We pray they succeed in having a convention, but I doubt if the convention will be able to produce a leadership that will be acceptable to all the talk shops. The convention is going to be the end of PDP.”