PDP flag
By Akeem Atoyebi
Following an avalanche of defections swirling through the ranks and strongholds of the country’s leading opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party, the National Working Committee of the PDP has called a meeting for Tuesday ( tomorrow) to tackle the gale of defections and other internal crises that have plagued the party over the past years, NATIONAL WAVES reports.
The hurricane had been clothed in speculation before the defection of the PDP’s former vice presidential candidate, Ifeanyi Okowa; the Delta State Governor, Sheriff Oborevwori and the entire PDP party structure in Delta, one of the former ruling party’s strongholds.
Recall that Delta Deputy Governor Monday Onyeme, state commissioners, local government chairmen, and the state’s grassroots machinery all switched en bloc to the APC after a closed-door parley in Asaba last week following ‘Hurricane Tinubu’, which had swept the PDP apart, with the opposition claiming the country was drifting towards a one-party state.
The party is believed to be battling one of its most difficult times since its formation in 1998. It has lost several members in the federal parliament, the latest being Oluwole Oke, a five-time member of the House of Representatives from Osun State, more defections, as being touted, would place the party at a competitive disadvantage with the ruling APC, with less than two years to the 2027 general election.
An authoritative source, who craved anonymity due to lack of authorisation to comment on the matter, confided in this medium that the NWC meeting will address the defection of party members to the All Progressives Congress and explore ways to prevent further defections.
The PDP has faced persistent internal strife both before and after the 2023 elections, leading to increasing instability and divisions across the party.
Setonji Koshoedo, the acting Secretary appointed by PDP Governors, confirmed that the National Working Committee meeting will take place in Abuja on Tuesday.
