JUST IN: PDP: North To Produce National Chairman, 2023 Presidential Candidate
Information reaching Naija News House that North To Produce National Chairman, 2023 Presidential Candidate
The Peoples Democratic Party has given the North the option of producing its presidential candidate in 2023 despite the emergence of a Northerner, Senator Iyorchia Ayu, as the consensus Chairmanship candidate of the party, The PUNCH has learnt.
This was confirmed by a former acting National Chairman of the PDP, Alhaji Kawu Baraje, during a chat with The PUNCH on Thursday.
Ayu, a former Senate President, who is from the North-Central, emerged the consensus candidate of the PDP ahead of a former Governor Ibrahim Shema of Katsina State and Senator Abdul Ningi from the North-East.
Traditionally, the PDP has always zoned its Chairmanship and Presidential seats to different regions, but while it zoned its Chairmanship seat this time around, it has refused to zone its Presidential seat.
Baraje, had in a statement on Wednesday said the North-Central needed the Presidency not the National Chairmanship of the party.
According to him, in the event the zone gets the Chairmanship, it should not prevent it from contesting the Presidency.
Speaking to The PUNCH on whether this concern was addressed before Ayu was chosen via consensus, Baraje said, “It was one of the provisos when we settled for Ayu. It (concern) was very much addressed and we are satisfied.
North To Produce National Chairman
“The party too agreed with us. Not only did we agree that the fact that the Party Chairman is coming from the North-Central does not stop the zone from contesting the presidential ticket This was put in black and white as an agreement.”
Speaking further he said, “Ayu is capable of leading the party to victory. He has been a Senate President. He has been a Minister. He is a founding father of the party. He knows who to contact and know that running a party is about inclusiveness. He is coming on board with all these experiences.”
With the agreement, the presidential ticket of the party is opened to the North and the South.
North To Produce National Chairman
