During a conference titled “Fix PDP To Fix Nigeria” held in Abuja, various party leaders expressed their views on the root causes of the party’s troubles. Hon. Ikenga Ugochinyere, a member of the House of Representatives, pointed fingers at Nyesom Wike, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory and former governor of Rivers State, accusing him of contributing to the party’s impasse. Ugochinyere also criticized the Acting National Chairman, Amb. Umar Damagum, and suggested that internal leadership struggles need to be addressed before the party can focus on external challenges. He argued that Wike’s alignment with the APC has created a conflict of interest that needs resolution.
Conversely, Ibrahim Abdullahi, the Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, disagreed with Ugochinyere’s assessment, instead placing the blame on former Vice President Atiku Abubakar. Abdullahi argued that Atiku’s actions, including his departure from the party and subsequent return to secure the presidential ticket, have exacerbated the party’s issues. He suggested that Atiku’s handling of the situation, particularly his interactions with dissenting governors, demonstrated a lack of caution and responsibility. Abdullahi also mentioned that the current National Working Committee (NWC), led by Damagum, inherited these problems and is not under Wike’s influence as alleged.
According to him
“We inherited the problems we are facing today. We are not in the pocket of Wike. Atiku Abubakar succeed in foisted the worse government in the person Buhari on us. Atiku left the party with all the effort many other people have done And then he surfaced again and got the ticket.
“We all rallied behind this same Atiku and we went to that election. There’s no way at the eve of that election five governors would be threatening this party and Atiku Abubakar would play that kind of levity and carelessness to say that they can go to hell.