Atiku/Wike feud: Can Okowa deliver South?

As the feud between the camps of the presidential candidate of the PDP, Atiku Abubakar and that of Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike, lingers, tongues are wagging over whether the governor of Delta State, Ifeanyi Okowa, the vice presidential candidate, will be able to deliver the South for the party, come February 25. All entreaties […]

As the feud between the camps of the presidential candidate of the PDP, Atiku Abubakar and that of Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike, lingers, tongues are wagging over whether the governor of Delta State, Ifeanyi Okowa, the vice presidential candidate, will be able to deliver the South for the party, come February 25.

All entreaties by various stakeholders of the party, including the founders, members of the Board of Trustees (BoT), the National Working Committee (NWC) among others, have failed to yield the desired result.

Five governors of the party, Seyi Makinde (Oyo), Samuel Ortom (Benue), Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia), Ifeanyi Ugwaunyi (Enugu) and Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, are at daggers drawn with Atiku.

While Makinde has endorsed the presidential candidate of the APC, Wike has given his blessing to the governorship candidate of the APC in Lagos State.

Efforts by the Wike camp to force the national chairman of the party, Dr Iyorchia Ayu, to resign for a southerner to man the seat have largely failed.

With the crisis still lingering, some stakeholders are wondering if Okowa can mobilise other stakeholders to deliver the South for the party.

Daily Trust, however, gathered that even before the process that led to his emergence, Okowa had endeared himself to Atiku and other key stakeholders.

A source in the party told Daily Trust: “You know Atiku Abubakar is a very liberal Nigerian who has tentacles across the country and beyond. He is actually someone who is open to choosing anyone he feels he can work with to drive his administration.

 “You can also see that the events of the last few weeks have shown why he chose Okowa over others. Atiku is not new to politics in Nigeria, he knows all the politicians, even across the board.”

He also contended that a leader needs a vice he can depend on, whether he is on the ground or not. “I believe that apart from being a southerner and a Christian, and the presidential candidate himself, who is a Muslim and Fulani from the North, Okowa has what it takes to lead the country in the absence of his principal whenever the need arises.”

The presidential candidate himself said that much during the unveiling of Governor Okowa, when he said his running mate “personifies not only the seriousness the current moment represents for our country but also the future that our young people yearn for and deserve.”

Atiku said during his consultations, “I made it clear that my running mate would have the potential to succeed me at a moment’s notice – that is, a president-in-waiting.

“In other words, the person must have the qualities to be president. The person must have an appreciation for the deep rot that our country has been put into by the rudderless APC government; understand the great suffering that most of our people are going through and the urgency of relieving them of that suffering; and understand the critical importance of economic growth and development to provide our young people with jobs, hope, and a pathway to wealth.

“In addition, my running mate has to be someone who is not afraid to speak his mind and give honest advice, and, be by my side as I work very hard to reverse the destructive impact of the past seven years of the APC government.”

Daily Trust also gathered that the party leadership has deployed two solutions to tackle the five governors and loyalists of the Rivers State governor.

They have, on the one hand, decided to move on and are making alternative arrangements to curtail the excesses of the governors in their states, and on the other hand, left open the window of reconciliation should reason prevail for an amicable solution between the warring factions.

The party leadership is also said to be working with members of the NWC and others opposed to the posture of the Rivers governor in the South West, South-South and South East to make sure that they do not lose out in the zone.

On Wednesday, some leaders of the party in Oyo State declared their support and promised to work for the emergence of Atiku, insisting that Makinde was not speaking for all of them.