Race For PDP BOT Chair: South West PDP Shuts Out South East

OBASANJO: Resigned As PDP BOT Chair

The desire of the South East to have a greater role in Nigeria’s ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) by seeking to head the party’s Board of Trustees (BOT) may be a mirage following the renewed demand for the plum job by the South West Caucus of the party.

This blog was told that key leaders of the party in the South West met recently in Abeoukuta, Ogun State capital where they demanded for the headship of the BOT.  The meeting which was attended by PDP big wigs in the South West stated that having lost the zone to the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), it has become imperative the zone is allowed to produce the Chair of the BOT as a measure to reintegrate the zone into the party.

While the meeting did not declare its support for some South West candidates jostling for the position, it was gathered that the move was designed to persuade other zones to support the cause of the South West in the PDP.

This development has been considered a blow to the demand of candidates in the South East eying the position. According to a source in the party, some of the candidates from the South East zone including former Presidential aspirant, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu had banked on the support of the South West caucus of the party to oil the success of their aspirations.

Meanwhile , fresh trouble is brewing in the party over the BOT Chairmanship election scheduled to hold on January 8 in Abuja. There are reports that key players in the party are rooting for a consensus template to elect the new chair of the party’s BOT, a position vacated by former President Olusegun Obasanjo who resigned from the post.

This has been opposed by other contenders who suspect that the consensus arrangement is a ploy to foist the choice of a cabal in the party. They rather insist to the adherence of the party’s constitutional provision which says elections into the BOT will be held by balloting.