By our reporter| A committee has been set up by the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to screen its vice-presidential candidate for the 2023 presidential election, even as the party’s National Advisory Committee has recommended the Rivers governor, Nyesom Wike as Atiku’s running mate.
Debo Ologunagba, the party’s national publicity secretary in a statement on Tuesday, said, the committee was pursuant to Part VI, Paragraph 14 of the Electoral Guidelines of the Party.
According to him, the National Working Committee (NWC) has approved the nomination of the Party members to serve on the Vice Presidential Candidate Screening Committee for the screening/verifying of the nominated Vice Presidential Candidate of our Party for the 2023 general elections.
The screening exercise, he said, will hold at the National Secretariat of the party in Abuja on Thursday, June 16, 2022.
Members of the committee to be chaired by Chief Tom Ikimi, include – Capt. Idris Wada (rtd), Chief Osita Chidoka, Rt. Hon. Binta Bello, Rt. Hon. Austin Opara, Prof. Aisha Madawaki, and H.E. Fidelis Tapgun.
Meanwhile, Rivers state governor, Nyesom Wike will likely emerge as former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar’s running mate in the 2023 Presidential election.
The National Advisory Committee, set up by the main opposition party to look into the report of an earlier committee has recommended the outspoken governor of the oil-rich Rivers State.
Sources familiar with the workings of the committee, said they overwhelmingly agreed to allow Wike, the runner-up in the party’s primaries to run with Atiku.
“Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike has been chosen by the committee. He was overwhelmingly voted for by the committee. Majority of the members see him as the ideal person to be the running mate to Atiku.
“You saw his showing at the primaries. The party leaders believe in his capacity and they have chosen him.”
The committee was said to have voted on the three names recommended by the General Aliyu Gusau committee with the Rivers Governor pulling sixteen votes.
The three names the source said were Nyesom Wike (Rivers), Ifeanyi Okowa (Delta), and Udom Emmanuel (Akwa Ibom).
Those at the meeting which was chaired by the Deputy National Chairman, North, Ambassador Umaru Damagun, were Governors Samuel Ortom (Benue), Aminu Tambuwal (Sokoto), and Bala Mohammed (Bauchi).
Others are former governors Babangida Aliyu (Niger), Sule Lamido (Jigawa), Liyel Imoke (Cross Rivers) Olusegun Mimiko (Ondo) and the minority leader of the House of Representatives, Ndudi Elumelu, among others.
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