Key figures in Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) are reportedly shifting their support from former Vice President Atiku Abubakar to the Governor of Oyo State, Seyi Makinde, as their preferred candidate for the 2027 presidential elections.
This development emerges shortly after PDP governors successfully mediated peace among conflicting factions within the party.
Despite recent efforts to solidify unity within the party, sources close to the PDP National Working Committee, who lean towards Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, indicate a growing endorsement for Makinde’s candidacy.
This shift appears to be a strategic move to derail Atiku’s potential nomination, who has been criticized within party circles as a ‘serial contestant.’
Sources who spoke with Punch suggest that some party leaders remain resentful towards Atiku for allegedly mishandling the party’s campaign in the 2023 elections.
The dissatisfaction stems from his failure to reconcile with a group of five disgruntled governors who had demanded the resignation of the then-national chairman, Iyorchia Ayu, contributing to internal rifts during a crucial election period.
The group, notably including Wike, Makinde, and former governors Samuel Ortom, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, and Okezie Ikpeazu of Benue, Enugu, and Abia states respectively, had previously opposed Atiku’s candidacy in the last election cycle.
A source disclosed, “Every election cycle, you will be given a presidential ticket; you will bungle it. Look at the mess that he caused for us at the 2023 election. What was difficult in going to kneel before the aggrieved five governors (G-5) and winning the election for us?
“Now, it is one of those same men you cried about that is giving you a problem. He could have waited till after the election and deceived Wike as (former President Olusegun) Obasanjo did during his time. Atiku was not serious and sincere about winning that presidency.”
A few members of the NWC, who did not want to be identified, also felt Atiku was always seeking to experiment with the PDP and had not shown enough zeal to win it, following the manner he handled his differences with the camp of Wike and the other four governors during the intrigue of Ayu-must-go campaign.
They also feared that he may no longer be a sellable candidate in 2027 because of his age, hence the need for a younger and more vibrant candidate like Makinde.
“The same (Iyorchia) Ayu he was protecting told us during the campaign that both Atiku and Tinubu are his friends. But you were there playing politics like a greenhorn.
“Just because of Ayu, you sacrificed five governors. There was no way those five governors would not have changed the story for us. We lost the presidential election by less or a little over one million votes.
“That is why we are seeking a way out. Nobody can just be coming and using the PDP to experiment every four years. For now, we are supporting Seyi Makinde. Let this aspiration go to the South West this time. Makinde has shown capacity. He is a Christian and a Southerner.
“Let us try the other side of the country for a change. Seyi is young and vibrant. He can connect with both the young and old. We only need to get a powerful northern candidate for him, and he is good to go,” an NWC member disclosed.
When quizzed on how the narrative moved from talks about the chances of Atiku working together with Peter Obi, who many thought would defect from the Labour Party in the wake of the leadership crisis rocking his party, the PDP chieftain said the former LP candidate was not willing to take the bait.
He said, “On Obi, I can tell you he has not made up his mind to come to the PDP. If he decides today, the equation may change. For now, he is still with the Labour Party.”
Meanwhile, Makinde has openly declared that he is qualified to contest and would push for the 2027 presidential election agenda when the time is right.
Speaking with reporters during a visit to Fashola farm in Oyo town on Friday, Makinde stated that speculations about his political future were unnecessary and unsolicited.
The governor stated that “he is old enough to speak for himself on any issue without fear or intimidation,” adding that he would do so publicly if he had anything to say about his political future.
The governor also cautioned Nigerians against allowing the country to slide into a one-party state.
The former VP’s Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, in his reaction said that they are not under any formof pressure over the choice of Makinde as was being speculated.
According to him, people should focus on how Nigerians would overcome the current hardship in the land, rather than talk about who should be given the presidential ticket for 2027.
He said, “Who is threatened? We are talking about how Nigerians will survive the economic problems they are facing, some people about 2027. Is it not too early? We are concerned about the welfare of Nigerians. We are not bothered about their machinations.
“It is only a man who doesn’t have the interest of Nigerians at heart that will be talking about 2027, especially when people are dying every day. We are not ready for that drama.”
