The post-election crisis that has rocked the main opposition party, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP with the stepping aside of the National Chairman of the party, Senator Iyorchia Ayu might lead to the death knell for the party struggling to wrestle power in May 29, 2023 if the petitions of the party at the presidential election tribunal is anything to go by
By Miracle Egbo
Senator Iyorchia Ayu is one politician that has attracted hatred like bee to honey. In the morning political jobbers swarm around him like a virgin to young men especially in his ward, in the evening the same people plot against him because he is not philanthropic with the spoils of his office, this is the political lot of the suspended National Chairman of People Democratic Party, PDP. The travails of Ayu started with his suspension by his party’s ward executives who hitherto were loyal to him but he allegedly ignored them to his perils. Facts at the disposal of this medium revealed that before his suspension his allies in the ward alerted him but he dismissed the warning as non issue. Ayu’s constituency warned him about the impending political doom but his grandstanding even in face of failure saw him crashing.
Ayu has vowed to fight back but appeared to have adopted more pragmatic approach to fight for his political future by deference to the court order preventing him from parading himself as the National Chairman of the party. He started his fight on a good note by making sure that the chairman of his Igyorvov ward was suspended. The Acting Chairman of the party in Benue State, Isaac Meff who announced the suspension of the chairman of Ayu’s ward said that the suspension of the ward chairman of the party was to make sure that sanity was restored in the party at the ward. According to Meff, the idea behind the temporary suspension of the Igyorvov ward chairman is to calm the tension generated in the party that the suspension of Ayu caused.
Meff’s statement, according to an informed source close to the traducers of Ayu was used to give him a soft landing because sources insisted Ayu was not going to come back as the National Chairman of the party because the grouse against his style of leadership had assumed life of its own, thus there was nothing anybody can do. Information scooped by Tentacle revealed that Ayu’s travails might have just begun as his traducers are not leaving any stone unturned to make sure that he does not smell that office again. Investigation orchestrated by this medium revealed that some of the members of the National Working Committee of the party appeared to have bought into the mantra of Ayus’s traducers that his tenure as the National Chairman has the trappings of insincerity, grandstanding and outright incapacity to steer the affairs of the party.
Abandoning Ayu in the cold may have found expression in the way and manner the Deputy National Chairman of the party, North, Umar Damagum had handled the affairs of the party since Ayu stepped down as the National Chairman in difference to the court order. For instance, all the decisions taken by Ayu as the National Chairman of the party have been reversed. The Deputy National Chairman of the party, North and the acting National Chairman had recalled most of the members of the party that were suspended by the Ayu- led administration. According to the acting National Chairman of the party, recalling those suspended was done in the spirit of reconciliation to prepare the party for the task ahead.
Members of the party who were suspended by Ayu but was recalled by the acting National Chairman include; Former Senate President, Pius Anyim Pius, former governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose, Ibrahim Shema former governor of Katsina State and other members of the party who were arbitrarily suspended by the embattled former National Chairman. The acting National Chairman said other members of the party who had been infracted against in the past would be called back and apologized to where necessary. An informed insider averred that there are calculated plot by even some members of the NWC of the party to make sure that Ayu does not come back as the National Chairman of the party. According to the insider, the presidential candidate of the party Alhaji Atiku Abubakar who would not come to his rescue because he is more preoccupied with reclaiming his mandate at the presidential election tribunal which he alleged was mistakenly given to Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Sources said that Atiku does not want to dabble into the matter because he needs all the concerted efforts of the members of the party in helping him reclaim his mandate at the tribunal, adding that supporting Ayu now would deny him the support of other members of the party who may have evidential documents to reclaim the mandate at the tribunal, therefore, would not rock the boat.
It would be recalled that those who suspended Ayu and subsequently got court injunction to remove him as the National Chairman of the party insisted that his dismal performance of the chairman in the just concluded general election is one of the reason he was suspended. They alleged that he does not carry his political ward along in some of the decisions he took in the past which put the party in a dire disrepute. According to them, he is a man who does not respect his words and should not be allowed to lead the party any longer. They cited the statement he made when he newly emerged as the National Chairman of the party to the effect that he would resign his position if the party elects a northerner as the presidential flag bearer of the party in the 2023 presidential election. Ayu observed that promise in the breach, when reminded of such vow; he tried to rephrase his statement to read that if a northerner from the party is elected president of the country he would resign.
Analysts are of the opinion that the post election crisis that rocked the party may dismember the party if it is not handled well; adding that except the acting National Chairman of the party is able to rally round those whose political egos had been bruised by the activities of Ayu as the National Chairman of the party. According to them, the acting National Chairman of the party has a lot of work to do if the party is ready to defy the storm that might ruin the future of the party.
Whatever is the case the main opposition party is in for long battle that is likely to claim another member of the NWC in weeks or months to come especially if the party is successful at the tribunal in months to come. It is believed in some political quarters that Ayu is the most controversial National Chairman of the party since the creation of the party what with the way and manner he handled the G-5 governors of the party. Although the G-5 governors had their political fingers burnt except Governors Nyesom Wike and Seyi Makinde who survived the political storm by installing sidekick and retaining second term mandate.
