PDP: Northern leaders endorse Turaki as consensus chairmanship candidate

From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) stakeholders in the North have endorsed former Minister of Special Duties, Tanimu Turaki, as the consensus candidate for the national chairmanship of the opposition party.

The Adamawa State governor, Ahmadu Fintiri, disclosed this after the meeting of northern leaders of the PDP on Wednesday in Abuja.

However, Fintiri said anyone who disagrees with the consensus arrangements is free to contest the position at the national convention scheduled for November 15 and 16 in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.

The parley, which ended at about 11 pm on Wednesday night, was attended by Governors Fintiri, Bala Mohammed, Bauchi and Dauda Lawal, Zamfara.

Others in attendance included the PDP National chairman, Umar Damagum, former Kano State Governor, Ibrahim Shekarau, former Senate President, Bukola Saraki, Turaki, amongst others.

Fintiri, who briefed journalists on the outcome of the meeting, said, “We have met this evening to deliberate and takea  decision on the office of the chairman of our great party, the PDP, which was zoned to the north.

“And in our meeting, we have reflected deeply and widely through consultation and going to Ibadan for our national convention, we have adopted a consensus candidate to represent the North, and by extension, Nigeria, as the chairman of the PDP.

“And that gentleman is KT Turaki, SAN. This is our decision this evening, and he is the person we are presenting at that convention as our chairman to represent our party on the 15th and 16th of November in Ibadan.”

The Adamawa governor, who expressed optimism that the convention would be hitch-free, said the party would reach out to members who might have misgivings over the consensus arrangements.

“PDP is an institution, and we have a mechanism to handle all these issues. And we’ll reach out and we’ll talk to each other.

“We have been talking to ourselves, not today, not yesterday. This is a build-up of consensus in the last two weeks, and we have just had a consultation, and this is just the result. And I am assuring you that the convention will be a rancour-free convention,” he stated.