Suswam declares interest in PDP national chair position

Gabriel Suswam, former governor of Benue state, has declared his intention to run for the office of the national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

In a statement issued by Bede Bartholomew, media aide to Suswam, the former governor expressed his desire to vie for the position during an expanded caucus meeting of the party, held at his residence in Katsina-Ala, Benue state, over the weekend.

He said Suswam is seeking to complete the tenure of Iyorchia Ayu, the suspended national chairman of the party. 

“The meeting which was convened by the Zonal Vice Chairman Hon. Azua Ashongo, had about all stakeholders in attendance including the former governor of Benue State, HE. Sen. Gabriel Suswam, who announced his interest in the position of the national championship which by the law of the party is still domiciled in North Central and Benue in particular,” the statement reads.

Bartholomew said those who attended the meeting included Titus Uba, Benue PDP governorship candidate in the 2023 election; Margaret Icheen, member of the PDP board of trustees (BoT); and Maurice Tsav, north-central secretary of the party.

Suswam served as a member of the house of representatives from 1999 to 2007.

He was elected governor of Benue in 2007 and reelected in 2011.

In 2019, he was elected to represent the Benue north-east senatorial district in the senate.

AYU’S REMOVAL FROM OFFICE 

Ayu was elected as the national chairman of the PDP in October 2021 to serve a term of four years.

According to section 47 (1) of the party’s constitution, each elected officer of the party “shall hold office for a term of four years and shall be eligible for reelection for another term and no more”.

Ayu was suspended from office in March 2023, after the executive members of Igyorov ward, Gboko LGA of Benue, passed a vote of no confidence on him over alleged anti-party activities.

The LGA executives claimed that Ayu worked against the success of the PDP in his ward during the 2023 elections.

They also alleged that he was not paying his membership dues and did not vote in the March 18 governorship and house of assembly elections in the state.

Ayu’s suspension was upheld by the court. He was stopped from parading himself as the party’s national chairman.

The party subsequently named Iliya Damagum as the acting national chairman.

TROUBLE FOR AYU AFTER PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY

Ayu was suspended after he declined calls by some members of the party to resign, following the presidential primary of the party in 2022.

Crisis broke out in the main opposition party after Atiku Abubakar, presidential candidate of the party at the time, picked Ifeanyi Okowa as his running mate for the 2023 election, overlooking Nyesom Wike who was recommended by a panel comprising national working committee (NWC) members and governors.

Wike polled second to Abubakar in the PDP presidential primary election in May 2022, after the last-minute withdrawal of Aminu Tambuwal, who asked his supporters to back the former vice-president.

A day after the primary election, Ayu openly celebrated Abubakar’s victory, describing Tambuwal as “the hero of the convention”.