•PDP chieftains reject call for opposition leaders to join SDP

From  Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja and Noah Ebije, Kaduna

Former governor of Jigawa State and chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Sule Lamido, has fired back at Mallam Nasir el-Rufai over his call for opposition politicians to join the Social Democratic Party (SDP).

The former Kaduna State governor, who recently announced his defection from the APC to SDP, had urged opposition leaders including Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi, Rotimi Amaechi and Rauf Aregbesola to join him in his new political movement.

However, Lamido in an interview with BBC Hausa service, dismissed El-Rufai’s invitation to opposition members, questioning his political ideology and commitment to national development.

“With all due respect, how does he expect us in PDP to leave and join another party? The PDP that we built is the same party that made him who he is today. How can a grandson claim his grandfather knows nothing?” Lamido said.

He recalled that El-Rufai once declared there were no political elders in Nigeria, insisting that he and his allies were the true power brokers.

“But now he claims he was advised by Buhari. If he truly had the power he once boasted of, why did he have to seek Buhari’s counsel?” Lamido asked.

The former governor stressed that despite PDP’s internal challenges, it remained his political home.

“If PDP is struggling today, it is still the party that nurtured el-Rufai. If he claims PDP is dead, then he must remember that it’s the party that gave him his political foundation. Whatever he has achieved today, PDP made it possible.”

Lamido argued that if he had any intention of leaving PDP, he would have done so in 2014 when APC was formed.

“If I didn’t join APC in 2014 when I was invited, and they left PDP out of anger, why are they now leaving APC? What has APC done to them?” he asked.

He maintained that governance should not be driven by emotions or personal grudges.

“Leadership is about patience, foresight, and working for the peace of the people and the nation. If you allow emotions to dictate your decisions, you will never lead objectively.”

He stressed that if the goal is to unseat President Bola Tinubu, it should not be based on personal grievances but on national interest.

“We should not fight Tinubu just because we are angry at him or seeking revenge. Leadership should be about prioritizing the country’s well-being rather than personal emotions.”

Lamido urged politicians to focus on strengthening the country rather than taking decisions based on resentment.

Also reacting, some chieftains, in separate interviews with Daily Sun, said PDP was better suited as a vehicle for the opposition in the quest to dislodge APC in 2027.

The PDP Deputy National Youth Leader, Timothy Osadolor, said while the call for opposition leaders to unite is a welcome development, the SDP does not have the required structure to serve as the vehicle.

“What is the structure of SDP in this country? That should be the first question. That he has defected to a mushroom political party is not the reason the PDP should be rubbished.

“Yes, the call for opposition leaders to merge is a welcome call because if there is no merger among the national opposition leaders, it will make the work easier for Tinubu to return. But it is not the SDP that is the vehicle.”

According to him, opposition leaders should sit with the PDP to discuss how to drive the coalition under the major opposition party.

“The opposition leaders should meet and work out how best to work with the PDP. As we speak, the PDP is the only major opposition party that has structure across 774 local government areas of the country.

“You cannot have any opposition in this country to a Tinubu Presidency without factoring the role of the PDP. Yes, the PDP cannot do it alone but it is not the SDP that will do it.

“We need everybody to come to the table. We need all the opposition leaders to sit down with the PDP to discuss how to go about it. But to say that the SDP should be vanguard for the major opposition will not be a reality,” Osadolor stated.

Similarly, a member of the PDP NEC, Diran Odeyemi, told Daily Sun that while el-Rufai’s call for the opposition leaders to unite is a good idea, they should come together under the PDP.

“I believe in his (el-Rufai’s) postulation that all opposition party  leaders should come together, if they actually want to win in 2027. But PDP is not a small political party. It is a big party. I would have preferred all of them to come and join the PDP so that they can rescue Nigeria from the APC.

“PDP is known. It is always difficult to introduce a new political party to Nigerians. It is always better to go for a bigger one. PDP appears bigger than any other political party. They should all come together under the umbrella of the PDP.”