The Peoples Democratic Party has said that the endorsement
of the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Mr Peter Obi, by an elder
statesman, and leader of the Pan Niger Delta Forum, Chief Edwin Clark, on
Tuesday has further confirmed that the party must reconcile with the five
aggrieved governors.
The party’s Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Ibrahim
Abdullahi, said this in an interview with The PUNCH on Tuesday while reacting
to the endorsement by Clark.
Clark had announced the endorsement at a press conference in
Abuja barely 48 hours after a similar endorsement by former President Olusegun
Obasanjo.
He said it was only fair and just that the South produced
the next president after eight years of the President, Muhammadu Buhari.
He disclosed that he had earlier directed the national
leadership of the Pan Niger Delta Forum to meet with Obi in Yenagoa, Bayelsa
State on December 23, 2022.
He said after being briefed on the successful outcome of the
interaction; he had taken note of some observations which led to the
endorsement.
Clark said, “Considering all these factors, and putting His
Excellency Peter Obi side-by-side with all other candidates being presented by
other political parties, I am convinced beyond doubt, that our country Nigeria
has a great opportunity to elect a phenomenal team, the candidate of the Labour
Party, and his Deputy, Senator Datti Baba-Ahmad, as President and Vice
President respectively.
“I formally hereby announce that I will, therefore,
personally, vote for Peter Obi and his vice-presidential candidate on election
day, February 25, 2023, as President and Vice-President of the Federal Republic
of Nigeria.”
PDP reacts
The PDP’s Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Abdullahi,
said the party must reconcile with the aggrieved governors.
He said, “We must able to put our house in order in the days
ahead, and the first step is to rekindle our relationship with the five
governors. If it happens in our favour, I will be the happiest person.
“If Peter Obi is getting this endorsement from first a
former president that has been the most celebrated and the most relevant former
president living, and is corroborated by another leader from the South-South
who is believed to be the president of the South-South Forum, then it is going
to confirm to you that Peter Obi might be the surprise that this country is
waiting to receive because clearly, it is looking like we must go to the second
ballot and that second ballot is going to determine what will happen.
“The endorsement of Peter Obi by Chief Edwin Clark is a
confirmation of the strength of the impact that Peter Obi is making with his
presidential bid. It is a confirmation that we might be heading to what we call
political Armageddon of some sort.”
Ortom backs Obasanjo
Meanwhile, Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, also on
Tuesday backed Obasanjo’s endorsement of Obi.
In a statement issued by the Special Adviser to the Governor
on Media and Publicity, Terver Akase, titled ‘Governor Ortom backs Obasanjo’s
endorsement of Peter Obi,’ the governor noted that the former president was
right in his choice of Obi as the right candidate to win the election and
provide the leadership that Nigerians desire.
Ortom said if he was not a member of the PDP, PDP, he would
have personally led Obi’s campaign across the country.
The statement read, “He (Ortom) is convinced that Obi possesses
the qualities of a leader who will be a true President of this country by
guaranteeing justice, equity and fairness for all Nigerians.
“He says the President that Nigeria needs at this
challenging time in the country’s history should be the one that understands
the urgent need to unite the people and speedily initiate policies and actions
to redirect the ship of the nation on the path of growth and development, and
emphasises that Peter Obi has all such qualities.”
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