Elempe Dele, Edo.
There is a heightened call for Senator Ayu to leave PDP as the chairman of the Party. And the insistence is hinged basically on morals. PDP is approaching a make or mar election and as a matter of fact, he has contributed to a considerable amount of problems within the Party. But let’s leave that for another discourse.
In an interview conducted far before the PDP primaries in Abuja, Senator Ayu agreed that if the presidential candidate emerges from the North, he would give way for the Chairman of the Party to be zoned to the South. And the New Telegraph newspaper learned that arriving at Ayu as a consensus candidate was not easy and he was made to sign an undertaking that his emergence will not preclude anybody from any of the three zones from contesting the 2023 presidential election.
And that part of the agreement was that if the candidate eventually emerge from the North, Ayu will resign and work for the candidate as an ordinary member of the Party. So what is stopping Ayu from honoring that agreement now Atiku from the North has emerged? Morally, Ayu ought not to be urged to leave office; for the sake of equity, Fairplay, justice, and his integrity, he should since have left so that a chosen Southern candidate can emerge.
In his acceptance speech, Ayu promised to take PDP to its winning ways, adding that after the convention they will work to “rebuild the Party to take over power to rebuild the country”. He added that “we intend to work together with all the leaders, not only in the North but across the country to reposition this country for the next generation of all Nigerians.”
These seem to be empty words; Ayu has succeeded in bringing more rifts into PDP than he met it. First, he did the unthinkable by openly thanking Governor Tambuwal for being “the game changer” during the PDP primaries. This unfortunate partisanship from the Chairman of the Party didn’t go down well with most party members, especially as it negated his acceptance speech where he promised to work with all leaders, not only those from the North.
These apart, most states are faced with an internal crisis within the Party and all fingers are pointing to Ayu allegedly for pecuniary gains. Edo, Delta, Kano, and the Imo States are among those that are crisis-ridden, especially from the fallout of primaries where Ayu sided with the money bags.
Mr. Deji Adeyanju accused him of turning the Party Headquarters into a Bureau De Change.
And most importantly, PDP should not be seen as a northern Party especially down south where the BOT Chairman, the Chairman, and the Presidential Candidate are all from the North.
This does not represent the true meaning of federal character which takes cognizance of our plurality.
This is exactly why APC Muslim/Muslim is faced with serious backlashes. A Southern Chairman will balance the idea and equation about diversity.
On this basis, Senator Ayu must leave now to pave way for an experienced Southern Chairman who will be above the mundane and parochial type of politics Ayu has introduced into PDP. The Party needs genuine reconciliation if it is ready to win this election. Those that are aggrieved within the Party pushovers overs. PDP unifier who will be willing to sacrifice for the Party.
It is on this basis that I wish to enjoin those leaders who will be holding the all-important meeting with the BOT Chairman tomorrow to hold on to the fact that all negotiations must start and end up with Ayu leaving.
