A former campaign spokesman for former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, Kassim Afegbua has declared that the 2023 presidential ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) should be zoned to the south.
This is as he argued that Atiku and other northern aspirants do not deserve to get the PDP ticket based on justice, equity, and fairness.
Afegbua in a statement on Sunday added that once Atiku loses the 2023 presidential ticket, it is the end of his political career as he would run away to Dubai and go into extinction.
He said contrary to the declaration by Atiku that the PDP will go into extinction if he doesn’t clinch the party’s ticket, the PDP is a viable party that is bigger than any individual and would continue to exist.
“This is how to promote party cohesion, unity, and oneness of purpose. It was in realization of that, that the Southern axis allowed their Northern brothers to take a shot at the presidency alone and all alone in 2019, he said.
He added that “talking about 2023, I read somewhere that Alhaji Atiku Abubakar said PDP would go into extinction in 2023 if they didn’t get it right. How wrong?. The PDP has come to stay as a viable political party that will endure the test of time.
“The fact is, once Alhaji Atiku is beaten at the party’s primaries, he will surely go into extinction and run away to his usual destination; Dubai”.
Afegbua added that there is no sincerity of purpose in Atiku’s quest to win the PDP presidential ticket as he smirks of desperation.
He accused Atiku of trying to ambush the party because of his selfish interests.
“There is no sincerity of purpose. What you see is a culture of desperation and a huge sense of self-entitlement as if the party was built or created for him”.
“Only last week, the party talked about setting up a zoning committee to look into the issue, the following day, Alhaji Atiku ambushed the party by purchasing the nomination form. Who does that? Where is the honesty and sincerity of purpose? Why wouldn’t he wait for the zoning committee to be composed, meet and come up with a decision? He has also set 23rd of March for his official declaration at the Conference Centre without waiting for any position of the party,” he added.
On why Atiku is not the right presidential candidate for the PDP, Afegbua identified age, inconsistency, insincerity, and desperation as some of the factors why the former Vice President shouldn’t be considered.
“Alhaji Atiku has not been consistent with the PDP. He’s driven by his ambition always and not the growth of the party to deepen democracy”.
“In 2019, Alhaji Atiku bulldozed his way and emerged the party’s presidential flag bearer. After the election, he couldn’t even wait for us to prosecute the project at the tribunal, he bolted away to Dubai. That was the last we saw him, except for now that he saw another Presidential contest coming, he suddenly emerged from the blues and wanted the ticket to be ceded to him against the run of play”.
“So, with or without Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, the PDP, as an organic party, has remained strong, viable and formidable. It is presently the only hope of the common man following APC’s underperformance in the last 7 years. Nigerians are looking forward to the PDP to get it right this time by fielding a candidate from the South”.
“This position is an irrevocable one that cannot be compromised by any interplay of forces against the provisions of Article 7 of the PDP constitution. Alhaji Atiku Abubakar should quit the stage at this time and allow justice to prevail. I am very sure he will run away to Dubai again once he loses out,” Afegbua submitted.
This article was originally published on Nigeria News