PDP Presidential Aspirants and Search for Consensus Candidate

•Continued from page 9

At another meeting with Okowa, Saraki also made a case for a consensus candidate, saying that it was for the sake of national unity.

While speaking during a consultative visit to Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State, Saraki said that some of the PDP Presidential aspirants from the North were ready to welcome a consensus candidate.

Those that purchased the presidential nomination form from the PDP Headquarters in Abuja include Saraki, Bala Mohammed, Dele Momodu, Wike, Anyim Pius Anyim, Nwachukwu Anakwenze, Peter Obi, Udom Emmanuel, Sam Ohuabunwa and Mrs Oliver Tareila Diana.

Atiku, it was gathered, was opposed to the consensus arrangement. He was said to have told those proposing the consensus arrangement that the concept they were pushing for was undemocratic and would not work. He swore never to be part of it.

According to sources, Atiku was said to have counseled that all aspirants should go and face delegates in a primary election.

Also speaking, one of the aspirants, Dele Momodu, said the move for a consensus PDP flagbearer was dead on arrival.

He said, “I see a very dangerous kind of desperation in our career politicians in Nigeria as our country prepares for the 2023 presidential election. It is unfortunate that some of our leaders are toying with the hard fought democracy most of them were never part of.

“At a time our country is at its worst state in decades, career politicians are only interested in hijacking power for themselves and they are totally disinterested in engaging the electorate on how they plan to rescue our country and its long-suffering people from the brink of total collapse.

“The concept of consensus as practiced in Nigeria is anathema to democracy because it is based on everything that democracy is not. It denies merit, enshrines illegality and enthrones mediocrity. Moreover, it embraces corruption, bullying and other unseen ills and threats.

“How are the proponents of consensus different from President Muhammadu Buhari, who has virtually taken over the control of APC as the Alpha and Omega? How will they enforce their consensus on someone like me when I have bought my nomination form and I am ready to contest all the way?

“They should please preserve their energy and let the people make their choices in a free and fair contest. That is the essence of democracy.”

Sam Ohuabunwa, who is also a presidential aspirant on the platform of the PDP, questioned the principles that would govern the choice of a consensus presidential candidate being promoted.

He is of the opinion that consensus should not be approximated to an arm-twisting scenario saying, “Why is the talk of consensus at this time when the clamour for a Nigerian president of South-East extraction has gained critical mass at the national level?

“Someone brought the idea of this consensus to my attention, to buy into it. When 10 people are contesting or vying for a position, you don’t exclude nine to the advantage of one person. Consensus must be a collective decision of all those involved in this game. Period.”

Also speaking on the consensus arrangement, the National Chairman of the National Conscience Party, Dr Yunusa Tanko, described it as a development of “weaklings trying to force somebody that the people do not want on them.” A popular consensus, he noted, comes from regular voting. “People pick the candidate they like through direct or indirect election. And this is the practice in democracy all over the World. Trying consensus muscle people out and creates problems in the future.

“Quite honestly, it is an unknown democratic principle that some set of people are trying to force on Nigerians, but it will boomerang. If you are being defeated at the poll fairly and squarely, you will not have any room to grumble. But if you are being muzzled, you may either want to go to court or create an ungovernable situation. So for me consensus is not the key to our democratic system. Let the popular will of the people prevail and let the popular will of the people triumph. That is how democracy can reign supreme,” he said.