PDP chieftain: Some party leaders have been bankrolled to derail Atiku’s presidential bid

Chinemerem Madu, a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has alleged that a national vice-chairman of the party has mapped out plans to frustrate Atiku Abubakar’s presidential bid.

Crisis has enveloped the major opposition party since its presidential primary in May. The likes of Seyi Makinde, governor of Oyo, and Nyesom Wike, governor of Rivers, have continuously demanded the resignation of Iyorchia Ayu as the national chairman of the party.

Their grievances are grounded on the party’s provision that the national chairman and presidential candidate cannot be from the same region.

Reacting to the development in a statement on Wednesday, Madu, a member of the PDP national executive committee (NEC), said a national vice-chairman, whose name wasn’t mentioned, confessed to having “been heavily bankrolled” to disrupt the presidential campaign.

Madu said the party chieftain is seducing NEC members with huge sums of money to fabricate stories to soil Atiku’s bid for the presidency.

He said the call for Ayu’s resignation is a decoy aimed at frustrating Atiku’s sixth shot at the presidency.

“Members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) are alerted of furtive moves by a compromised national vice chairman and a couple of members of the National Executive Committee (NEC) to derail our Presidential Campaign and scuttle the deserving victory of our Presidential Candidate, Atiku Abubakar at the 2023 general elections,” he said.

“This national vice chairman and his cohorts who confessed to having been heavily bankrolled are approaching and offering members of NEC sums ranging from N25 million to N28 million each to address a damaging press conference with fabrications aimed at derailing the presidential campaign.

“The said national vice chairman had approached me personally as a member of NEC to inform me of plots to orchestrate a heavily funded press conference to be addressed by select NEC members seemingly calling for the resignation of the national chairman, Sen. Dr Iyorchia Ayu, but actually targeted at frustrating the Atiku Abubakar presidential bid.

“He pointedly confessed to me that the demands and agitation of his group have not been against the party chairman, as the public has been made to believe, but against Atiku Abubakar. He also vowed that nothing will assuage the group which is now bent on derailing the PDP presidential campaign. 

“Central to this plot is the timing of the damaging press conference, which has been scheduled to hold soon after the inauguration of the PDP presidential campaign council and the official commencement of campaigns with a view to unsettle the PDP presidential campaign and scuttle Atiku Abubakar’s presidential bid.

“Part of the scheme is to use the press conference to throw up a heavily concocted script which will contain unprintable damaging claims, assertions and allusions that will trigger confusion within the party and sidetrack the presidential campaign.”

Madu said he is obliged to alert PDP leaders and members of the scheme “as a loyal and very dedicated party man”.