Fresh tension has erupted in the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, as internal divisions widen over whether the opposition party should back President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid in 2027 or present its own presidential candidate. A faction led by former minister Kabiru Tanimu Turaki, with the support of Oyo State governor Seyi Makinde, has firmly rejected any plan to adopt Tinubu, insisting it would be “improper” for an opposition party to endorse the flag bearer of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC.
The rival camp, aligned with Federal Capital Territory Minister Nyesom Wike, is more open to supporting Tinubu and currently backs the National Caretaker Committee organising Sunday’s March 29 national convention in Abuja. This has left the PDP effectively split into two blocs, even as reconciliation talks continue and some court cases are expected to be withdrawn if a political settlement is reached.
Factional National Publicity Secretary Ini Ememobong said on television that supporting Tinubu would be unjust and fundamentally unfair to PDP members, warning that turning the PDP into an appendage of the ruling party would damage Nigeria’s democracy. He stressed that peace efforts must respect the party’s constitution, which mandates the PDP to field candidates for all elective positions, including the presidency in 2027.
Leaders in the Wike-backed camp, however, maintain that the PDP will still field a presidential candidate and are already looking beyond the Abuja convention to another elective convention to pick the party’s flag bearer. A senior figure in the camp disclosed that after the convention, the party will move quickly into primaries, with all presidential aspirants allowed to contest as other parties also choose their nominees.
Elder statesmen in the PDP, including Chief Olabode George and former Senate President Bukola Saraki, have insisted there is no going back on reconciliation and warned against allowing the crisis to push Nigeria toward a de facto one-party system. George described attempts to weaken the PDP as “worse than infidelity,” while Saraki said his top priority is to keep the PDP on the ballot in 2027 by ensuring a legally compliant convention with the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, in attendance.
In Kwara State, PDP leaders and stakeholders have resolved to attend the Abuja national convention and said its outcome will determine their strategy for the 2027 elections. They reaffirmed confidence in the PDP as a popular and credible platform in the state, stating that if INEC recognises the convention, they will recommend using the party as their vehicle for the next general polls.
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