Barring any last-minute changes, the Peoples Democratic Party?s National Working Committee, NWC, and the Governors Forum are scheduled to hold a strategic meeting on May 11 to address the wave of defections and other challenges facing the party.

A trusted senior member of the NWC who requested to remain anonymous due to lack of authorisation to speak on the matter, exclusively told The PUNCH that the governors are scheduled to meet with the party leadership on May 11.

The source stated that the meeting will focus on strategies to prevent certain members from leaving the party, the issue of the National Secretary, and other matters impacting the party.

This is as the PDP NWC instructed its Legal Adviser, Kamaldeen Ajibade SAN, to take legal action in court regarding the defection of Delta State Governor, Sheriff Oborevwori, and other elected officials.

Recall that on April 23rd, Delta State Governor Sheriff Oborevwori, along with his predecessor and PDP?s 2023 vice presidential candidate Ifeanyi Okowa, as well as other elected party members from the state, officially defected to the All Progressives Congress.

The source stated that the outcome of the meeting between the Governors Forum and NWC members will play a crucial role in determining the party?s future direction.

He stated, ?The meetings took considerable time because many issues were discussed. We reviewed various matters affecting the party, and Senator Samuel Anyanwu was present and addressed the NWC meeting.

?Some NWC members who couldn?t attend in person joined virtually, making the discussion comprehensive ? particularly on the recent defections. After reviewing all the circumstances surrounding the defections of Okowa and the Delta State Governor, we concluded that their actions were motivated by personal interests.

?The party leadership has treated them fairly, so their defection came as a surprise. We agreed to hold a meeting with the governors on May 11 at a yet-to-be-determined venue to further deliberate on the defections.

?Regarding the National Secretary issue, we resolved to adopt the governors? recommendations. However, most of us also noted that their stance complicates the matter, as the Supreme Court?s ruling favors Anyanwu. These issues, along with the defections and others, will be revisited during the meeting with the governors. Nonetheless, we are all committed to working together in unity.?

While addressing journalists after the 600th NWC meeting in Abuja on Tuesday, Acting National Chairman Umar Damagum stressed that the party?s interests would not be surrendered to its rivals.

Damagum confirmed that the PDP NWC is united and cautioned against using it as a reason for defection.

He stated, ?I want to ask our teeming supporters to support the party. We may have our issues. But, the beauty of this party is that it has always resolved its crisis.

?We have also instructed the National Legal Adviser to recover our mandate that they have taken away in Delta. The fortune of this party cannot be just left in the hands of our adversaries, so we will take legal action to retrieve those mandates, as far as the Electoral Act states that whenever you leave, you must leave the chair that you have occupied. So we are going to still do that.

?And I also want to warn that party faithful should be faithful to the party. As you can see, we have an NWC that is devoid of any crisis. If somebody is looking for an excuse in order to justify whatever stupidity he wants to do, he should not say the party is divided. The party is intact. It will continue to live.

?So, I want to say here unequivocally that PDP is one of the most important parties, and it will continue ? it will continue ? to be one indivisible party. And no amount of intimidation or mischief can bring down this party.

?It has survived all sorts of machinations in the past, and this one is just child?s play. We?ve all seen it already crossed the line. We?re looking forward to 2027, where the country will speak based on the existing hardship that has been deliberately imposed on people.?

The acting National Chairman also revealed that the NWC has endorsed all the recommendations made by the PDP Governors Forum and will forward them to the National Executive Committee meeting scheduled for May 27.

Recalled that following their meeting in Ibadan on April 14, PDP governors, through the Governors Forum, endorsed the party?s Deputy National Secretary, Architect Setonji Koshoedo, and recommended holding an early National Elective Convention in August to elect new NWC members.

Damagum stated, ?We have adopted the recommendation that has been laid down by the Governors, we will forward it to NEC. It is a decision that only NEC can decide but we can initiate and recommend it to NEC so we are recommending.

?We are forwarding all these issues to NEC, for NEC to take an appropriate action, maybe earlier than that. We have suggested that, but depending on what the NEC will say I cannot speak for NEC I will only recommend.

?The date for NEC is May 27th and the convention we are looking at around end of August 28th, 29th, 30th but the proposal is subject to NEC approval.?

Damagum also announced that a Caretaker Committee has been established, under the oversight of the party?s South-South Caretaker Committee led by Chief Emmanuel Ogidi, to restructure the party in Delta State.

When asked by our correspondent if the party would take action against members openly supporting President Tinubu, Acting National Chairman Damagum confirmed, stating, ?Yes, very well.?

In a related development, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has refuted Okowa?s claim that he is on his way out of the PDP.

Speaking on Arise News on Tuesday, Former Delta State Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, who officially joined the All Progressives Congress on Monday, alleged that Atiku was preparing to leave the Peoples Democratic Party ahead of the 2027 elections.

Atiku was the PDP?s presidential candidate in the 2023 election, with Okowa his running mate.

On March 20, 2023, PDP presidential candidate Atiku, Labour Party?s Peter Obi, former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai and others jointly announced the creation of a coalition to challenge President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 election.

The move has sparked ongoing discussions about the potential for a united opposition, with political leaders expressing varied opinions.

In the interview, Okowa expressed regret for not aligning with his people in supporting a southern candidate in 2023 instead of accepting the role as Atiku?s running mate.

He said, ?Even when we were campaigning, I realised our people were not interested in having another northerner come into power.

?But the decision had already been taken at the federal level by the party, and I had been nominated. Still, in retrospect, I now believe I should have gone with the will of my people.?

He added that the election of the current Delta State Governor, Sheriff Oborevwori, proves that the people still have confidence in their leadership.

Okowa stated, ?That showed the people still believed in us, believed in me. They said you?ve done well, and we will support the governor you have chosen. And they did.?

When asked about his communication with Atiku before leaving the PDP, Okowa responded, ?I actually did communicate with him, that we were going to have stakeholders meetings and that we were going to have the stakeholders? meetings this week (in the last week) and that it was going to be a leadership meeting and the outcome of that meeting was going to determine our next path because we were no longer comfortable with the PDP.

?And I also know that he is already heading out of the PDP from the communications he has passed on to me and that Nigerians know already.?

He also revealed that Delta State political leaders have collectively moved from the PDP to the APC in a bid to regain influence for the state at the federal level.

According to Okowa, all presidents, including Tinubu, deserve adequate time to carry out their agendas to ensure stable and effective governance.

He stated, ?For the stability of this nation, I also do believe that, yes, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was elected president in 2023, and for the stability of Nigeria, it is best for us to have him complete his eight-year tenure.

?Then the presidency can move back to the North. I believe that is the right thing.?

The former governor revealed that, following extensive consultations, he, Governor Sheriff Oborevwori, and other notable state leaders decided to leave the PDP for the APC.

He described the defection as a calculated step to align with the ruling party at the federal level in order to secure a more promising future for Delta State.

Okowa added, ?Having looked at this very thoroughly, along with many other things that have been going on within the party, as to various court cases, as to who exactly is the national secretary of the party, and many other issues, PDP do not appear to be really ready for competition in the 2027 elections.

?So having looked at this, alongside the fact that we believe that as a political family in Delta state, we needed to be able to move ahead, to truly connect to the resources, as I did say yesterday. Yes, he?s the leader of the party as a governor. It?s not about me. It?s about the larger Delta state and the larger political family that we have.

?And I thought, in my own opinion, and in the opinion of the vast majority of leaders, because we had different levels of consultation. It was not just a question of a decision of the governor, or a decision between the governor and Dr. Okowa. We had various levels of meetings with several stakeholders, and even had to make consultations with some of our other leaders, who are not even politicians, before we came to this decision.

?And I think that our decision is right politically. I believe that we mean well for our people, and it is important for us to chart a path for ourselves that we think we can truly trust, and that could bring political gains to the people of Delta. And that was why the decision was taken.?

Okowa pointed out that during the last eight years under PDP leadership, Delta State faced difficulties in accessing federal opportunities.

According to him, this limited the state?s development and delayed project execution, despite his efforts as governor.

He continued, ?The fact is that at the moment, if you are a governor in a ruling party, you are likely to have greater access to goodwill and resources from the party at the centre.

?We have continued ? I was governor in opposition for eight years. And I know that though we tried to do our best in the state, we could not lay our hands on a lot of things that would have been able to benefit at the federal level.

?Because it is obvious, it?s easier for you to be able to connect to Abuja and to be able to attract both resources and investment in your state if you are within the discourse, the floor of discourse at the national level. But as an opposition governor, you are not able to get all that you want.?

However, when contacted for a response, Atiku?s media aide, Paul Ibe, stated that the former Vice President has no intention of leaving the PDP.

He also stated that Atiku holds no grudges against anyone, affirming that it is their right to determine their own political path.

He stated, ?We have said this in the past, but I will say it again: Atiku is not on his way out of the PDP.

?Atiku bears no grudges against Okowa or any other member of the party.

?He has consistently emphasised that people are free to chart their own course, in line with the Nigerian Constitution, which guarantees freedom of association. Atiku bears no grudges. (The PUNCH)

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