According to reports, former vice president Atiku Abubakar is attempting to unseat acting National Chairman Iliya Damagum in an effort to hold onto control of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
According to information obtained by Anaedoonline.ng, Damagum’s purported allegiance to Nyesom Wike, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), and his entourage is the reason Atiku and his supporters find him unsettling in office.
All political means to remove Damagum—including the forceful return of Senator Sam Anyanwu, the National Secretary—have not worked out, party officials informed Newsmen.
UPDATE: PDP Chairman, Damagum ‘Romance’ With Wike Sparks Reactions
According to one of the sources, Wike, the G-5, and a few PDP Governors Forum members, led by Bauchi State Governor Bala Mohammed, who is said to be interested in the 2027 presidential race, are among the reasons the conspiracy against Damagum hasn’t succeeded yet.
It was learned that, in the face of the PDP’s fierce opposition, Atiku and a few other party officials are fully backing Dr. Iyorchia Ayu, the party’s suspended national chairman, in his efforts to be reinstated.
Atiku and his allies feel that a struggle to the latter end in court is the only way to save the PDP from Wike and the G-5, even though Ayu is no longer eager to run for office.
According to the newspaper, Atiku has turned his focus to 2027 after President Tinubu lost his election case in the Supreme Court.
One of the issues the Atiku team recognised for the 2023 election, according to a high insider who spoke anonymously, was not having complete control of the party.
PDP Governors Reject Damagum As National Chairman, Delay NEC Meeting
He said: “Having lost the last Presidential Election, Atiku is plotting to have a firm grip on the PDP to be able to contest again in 2027. He still believes that he has a better chance.
“That is why he has yet to relocate to Dubai in the UAE. Contrary to his claim, he is not protecting any democracy in the country.
“The former VP and his team recognised that his major setback in the last election was not being able to control the PDP structure. There was internal dissent in the party, but without sanctions.
“He used what I would describe as a make-shift PDP structure for the last presidential election.
“During the campaign and the general election, the party was weak, and after the poll, the party was not strong enough to assail him.
“The Atiku camp is unhappy with Damagum for pandering to the whims and caprices of PDP leaders like Wike.
PDP Acting Chairman, Damagum, Other NWC Members Absent At Atiku’s World Press Conference
“Atiku’s major obstacle is that the party’s leadership is being controlled by two groups, including Wike/the G-5 and the PDP Governors’ Forum, which is headed by Governor Bala Mohammed, who may challenge him for the party’s ticket for 2027 poll.
“Bala had a patched relationship with Atiku during the countdown to the last general election.”
The inquiry claims that throughout the last two weeks, there has been fighting at the party’s National Secretariat between Atiku’s supporters and pro-Wike/G5 and Damagum members.
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