From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja

The crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has stalled the composition of the party’s 2023 presidential campaign council. 

Daily Sun gathered that the party is yet to unveil the campaign council because PDP leaders want the crisis to be resolved before the campaign council is constituted.

A top official at the PDP national secretariat said though the list of prospective members of the campaign council has been compiled, the opposition party is being careful with in respect to those that would eventually be saddled with the responsibility for the party’s 2023 presidential campaign.

Nevertheless, the party official said the presidential campaign council would be unveiled within the next one or two weeks, when the direction of the peace talks would have crystallised.

“We are working on the campaign council. We just want to know who should be in and who should be out. If you go ahead and announce it now, some persons will say ‘even though we are still talking, they  excluded us. In the next one week or so, there would be an update on the campaign council,” the party official said.

Similarly, the crisis has also stalled the conduct of the meetings of the  PDP National Caucus and National Executive Committee (NEC). Article 31(4) of the opposition party’s constitution provides that the NEC meeting should be held, at least, once in every quarter. However, the party has not held a meeting of the party organ, in the last five months.

Meetings of the PDP national caucus and NEC scheduled for earlier in the month was called off amidst fears that leaders opposed to the party Chairman, Iyorchia Ayu’s, continued leadership would move against him at the meeting.

Cracks within the opposition party widened recently, with the nomination of Delta State Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, as the PDP 2023 vice presidential candidate.

In the aftermath of Okowa’s nomination, supporters of Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, have been pushing for replacement of Ayu as condition for reconciliation in the party.

Last week, Atiku met with Wike in London over the crisis. At the meeting were governors of Benue State, Samuel Ortom; Abia State, Okezie Ikpeazu; Oyo State, Seyi Makinde as well as Adamawa State, Ahmadu Fintiri.

However, there are indications that the proposed peace deal between Atiku and Wike may be dead on arrival as PDP chairman is insisting he would remain in office until the 2023 general election.

A source close to the PDP chairman told Daily Sun that the national chairman believed there was no basis for his resignation. The source, while stating that Ayu’s resignation would not serve any purpose, noted that Atiku would not even ask him to quit.

“Ayu is not rattled. Ayu was elected to a term of four years. Why would someone make a demand in London that Ayu should go? If Ayu go today, the man who takes over from him is Umar Damagun (deputy national chairman, North) from the North East with Atiku. North East, North East; would they prefer it? And if they do replacement, it will come from the North Central. Not Igbo land, not Yoruba land, not Ijaw land. What are they talking about?

“Ayu will stay in office until the last day he chooses to leave. We are winning the (2023) presidency by God’s grace. When we win, we will form government and Ayu will leave. Ayu is not rattled, because he knows that it is wishful thinking. It won’t work. 

“Atiku would not ask Ayu to resign. Atiku is a fair man. He will not do that. If Ayu resigns, the next person to take over is Damagun. So, how does it help the agitation that the party chairman is from the North, the presidential candidate is from the North. It does not.”=

The party chieftain, while reacting to stories that Ayu was lobbying stakeholders for support, said there is nothing wrong with the national chairman reaching out to PDP members to support his leadership.

According to him, “he (Ayu) came here to do a national service. He can’t do it alone. He needs support to do it. He needs unity. He needs support of every stakeholders. If he talks to anyone and say ‘please, support me’, he is in order.”