– There appears to be cracks in the PDP ahead of its make or break national convention scheduled for December 9
– Report has it that there is a cold war between former president Goodluck Jonathan and Governor Nyesom Wike over Prince Uche Secondus’ bid to become PDP national chairman
– A source said Jonathan wants any chairmanship aspirant other than Secondus to emerge victorious at the party’s national convention
– Wike is a key supporter of Secondus and is angry that instead of working to ensure that his fellow Ijaw brother becomes the next chairman, the former president was busy working against Secondus
There are indications that former president Goodluck Jonathan and Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State are at loggerheads over the Prince Uche Secondus’ bid to become the national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Jonathan is said to be against Secondus, a frontline chairmanship aspirant in the party who hails from the Ijaw-speaking part of Rivers state and is reportedly mobilising serious opposition against him, The Nation reports.
On the other hand, Wike and other southsoutth governors are strongly behind Secondus, a former acting Chairman of the PDP National Working Committee (NWC).
Report has it that Jonathan is against Secondus because of the cold war between him and Wike and another southsouth governor who he believes frustrated an initial plot by his key loyalists to return him as PDP’s presidential candidate in 2019.
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A prominent PDP member who spoke in confidence, said: “Jonathan has continued to blame the failure of the plan on Wike and the other South-South governor. He believes that the duo frustrated his ambition to return as the party’s presidential candidate.
“His next move is to stop any aspirant for the position of national chairman who has links with Wike.
“He does not want Secondus, knowing that Wike is the one behind his ambition.
“Unknown to many people, Jonathan and Wike have fallen apart and Jonathan’s wife is no longer close to the governor of Rivers state.
“If Secondus is out of the way, Jonathan and his wife, Patience, will go for the structures of the PDP, especially in Bayelsa and Rivers states, to enable them to play key roles in the 2019 elections.”
Report has it that Jonathan is working closely with PDP stakeholders in the north against Secondus and reportedly held various meetings with them to get their support not to cast their votes for Secondus.
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The party source added: “Jonathan is serious with his anti-Secondus campaign in the north. The north has many of the delegates and presidential aspirants, and Jonathan is reaching out to all of them.
“While he is openly backing a former minister, Nenadi Usman, to become the national secretary of the PDP, Jonathan wants any chairmanship aspirant other than Secondus to emerge victorious at the party’s national convention.
“His actions are creating divisions in the party ahead of the convention. The Ijaw stakeholders in the party and the South-South are not happy with the former President for not supporting their own.
“But like he failed in his previous plots, he will definitely fail again, because Secondus is unstoppable.”
As the race for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chairmanship position is gathers momentum across the nation, a group known as the South-South Coalition for Good Governance has raised alarm over a move to scuttle the chance of Secondus emerging as national chairman of the party in the December 9 national convention.
In a statement signed by its coordinator, John Boma-Harrison, and sent to NAIJ.com, the group said the grand plot is being hatched by former president Goodluck Jonathan, using some of his northern allies.
According to them, the popularity of Secondus and his rich profile in party politics has made him the favourite to emerge as the PDP national chairman in the forthcoming convention.
The group advised the former president to desist from his actions and urged him to concentrate on playing the role of a statesman, rather than engage in subterfuge and unbridled politicking.
Nigerians want PDP back in 2019 – Goodluck Jonathan declares at PDP Caucus Meeting – on NAIJ.com TV
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Source: Naija.ng
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