*Gov Mohammed can’t install successor in 2027, says Bauchi PDP guber candidate
Chuks Okocha in Abuja
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Tuesday said the recent publication on the website of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has put to rest claims that the party is facing a leadership crisis.
Speaking at the Young Leadership Award presentation to the National Chairman of the PDP, Abdulrahman Mohammed, the party’s National Secretary, Senator Samuel Anyanwu, insisted that there is only one recognised leadership in the PDP.
“I want to use this opportunity to tell the Nigerian people, there is only one PDP in Nigeria. There is no Abdulrahman Mohammed or Tsunami-led faction. It’s not like that. There is only one PDP,” Anyanwu said.
He further stated: “Just yesterday, INEC has exposed those lies. There is only one PDP led by the national chairman, Abdulrahman Mohammed. So, the media please, do not deceive Nigeria, because you are helping in deceiving Nigerians.
“There is no other case; every case about PDP has ended at the Supreme Court and INEC have spoken loud and clearly,” Senator Anyanwu declared.
Commenting on the state of the party, Anyanwu said the current National Working Committee has brought improvement to the PDP.
“I want to say this. I wouldn’t say that in the last dispensation of PDP, we have credible men and women who piloted the affairs of the party. But I can say there’s a better improvement with the current members of the National Working Committee, and it is exemplified by what the National Youth Leader has done today,” he said.
The National Secretary also commended the youth wing of the party for honouring the National Chairman.
According to him, “I want to say to the youths, you are lucky. You have a very pragmatic, very focused National Youth Leader. Give them all your support so that all of us can succeed.
“A young man that ruled this country before was only 32 years as the president of this country. I’m sure he’s older than 32, so he can rule this party and give us what we want, and history will record him as that chairman that came when the people believed that PDP is zero and he is able to bring us back by winning so many states in the governorship and that of the National Assembly.”
Meanwhile, the PDP governorship candidate in Bauchi State, Adamu Usman Ahmed, said Governor Bala Mohammed cannot install a successor in the 2027 general election.
Ahmed, who spoke with journalists in Abuja, expressed confidence that the opposition would emerge victorious in the 2027 governorship election in Bauchi State.
The Bauchi governor, who was elected on the platform of the PDP, recently defected to the Allied Peoples Movement (APM).
Despite the governor’s political move, Ahmed maintained that the people of Bauchi are politically conscious and unlikely to allow any individual determine their next governor.
“The people of Bauchi are always wise. In fact, from the history of the state, there has never been a governor that was able to install a successor in the state. So the chances are clear, and the coast is clear for the opposition to win,” he said.
Ahmed noted that the 2027 election would be different from previous contests because of the number of political parties participating.
“Well, the dynamics of politics is very different nowadays, most especially in this 2027 election, because it is the only time where at least we have like seven or eight political parties contesting for the governorship election.
“Usually the trend has been only two parties, a two-horse race, and it is either the winning party or the opposition. But this is the only election where you have at least seven different candidates from different parties. That is my added advantage,” he added.
The PDP governorship candidate also outlined his priorities if elected governor, identifying unemployment as a major challenge facing the state.
“The major target of my government will be job creation, because that is what is causing lots of social crisis and the youth are nowhere to be found. So once we have this job creation, I believe that will cater for the unrest and social crisis that are affecting our economy,” Ahmed said.
