By Olusegun Olanrewaju and Ben Ogbemudia
There were heavy fireworks yesterday as Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, and a former governor of Ekiti State, Ayo Fayose, threw darts at the trend of contemporary politicking in the country, particularly in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) camp.

While Ortom picked on the PDP for being ‘unfair’ to Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, over his failed presidential bid and subsequent issues, Fayose revved up another argument, throwing up an apparent red herring by resurrecting the call for the southern presidency.

Crisis erupted in the opposition PDP after its May 29 national special convention, which saw the emergence of Atiku Abubakar as the party’s presidential candidate.

It continued unabated, culminating in the outburst yesterday when Ortom expressed anger that he and others who supported Wike for the PDP vice-presidential ticket slot deserved a detailed explanation from the eventual party presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar.

Ortom, who said he had resorted to fasting and prayers to seek God’s direction after the emergence of Delta State Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, as the running mate to Atiku, instead of Wike, the Benue State governor said in an interview on Arise TV yesterday morning, that it was ‘surprising’ that Atiku could jettison the recommendation of 14, out of 17 members of the committees that recommended Wike as his running mate.

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Atiku had after announcing Okowa as his running mate justified his picking of the Delta governor over Wike, “because he had the qualities to be a president, adding that he “is a president-in-waiting.”

The presidential candidate said, “In arriving at the decision, I held wide consultations with various stakeholders in our party including our governors, the national working committee, board of trustees, and other leaders to seek their inputs and their wisdom.”

“In these consultations, I made clear that my running mate would have the potential to succeed me at a moment’s notice, that is, a president-in-waiting.

“In other words, the person must have the qualities to be president. The person must have an appreciation of the deep rot which our country has been put into by the rudderless APC (All Progressives Congress) government; understands the great suffering that most of our people are going through and the urgency of relieving them of that suffering; understands the critical importance of economic growth and development to provide our young people with jobs, hope, and a pathway to wealth.”

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*Ortom’s verbal missile

But reacting to Atiku’s choice of Okowa yesterday, the Benue State helmsman argued that Wike deserved his current vacation in Turkey after what he went through.

According to him, though Okowa was not a bad choice, he believed Wike was the right man for the job, owing to his character, capacity, and intellect. He also threw some reservations as to the direction of the PDP presidential quest, on a spiritual note.

Speaking on Arise TV, Ortom said, “My friend, Wike, deserves the vacation after what he has gone through. Some of us believe he (Wike) has the capacity and charisma to lift this country from bottom to top, compared to what has been happening. We have been taken from the top in 2015 to the bottom since this present administration came into power.

“Some of us believe that Wike has the capacity, but Nigerians, or let me say, the PDP people did not give him the opportunity. Some of us rooted for him. I was amongst the 17-member committee that was set up by the candidate himself and the party, and some of us said that for the vice presidency of the party, we needed Wike to be the vice president so that he can bridge the gap.

Ortom added, “We (the committee) said it does not matter whether he supported the presidential candidate or not, all we are looking for is unity and how we can make things work. Unfortunately, it was said that it is Governor Ifeanyi Okowa who is also a PDP member. And that is the wisdom of the presidential candidate.

“Some of us have resorted back to prayers because I am really confused. I felt that Wike would have been the vice-presidential candidate of the party after losing the presidential ticket to Atiku. He was the second person to Atiku, and Wike has charisma.

“All of us have our weak spots. Wike can be ‘something-something’, but when it comes to mobilisation, impact, value addition and reaching out, and making sure that the party works, Wike is an instrument. Wike is somebody who stood for the party and makes sure that things work.
“So, for some of us, we believe in him, but unfortunately, it was somebody else and it doesn’t matter because the party is supreme. But for some of us, now I have resorted to prayers, and if you haven’t seen me in Turkey, it is because I am praying.

“I have resorted to prayers: Lord God, where do we go from here? Where is our country going and what is our problem? I tell you as a Christian, that I believe that power belongs to God. John 3:27 says “A man can receive nothing except it is given to him from above”. If God says it is Atiku, and if God says it is whoever, that is all.”

Asked if he supports Atiku, Ortom said, “I told you I am praying. I have gone into hibernation and I am fasting and praying. So, in the end, if God directs me to support Atiku, why should I not do it? After all, he is my party man.

“But I am waiting for him (Atiku) because there are more things he is expected to do. I expected him to reach out to Wike who came second and he denied him the popular view of PDP members. Fourteen out of 17 members say that Wike should be the VP but in his wisdom, he chose Governor Okowa. Governor Okowa is a nice man and my friend and I have no problem with him.
“But if we are in a democratic era, and 14 people out of 17 said that it should be Wike, and he (Atiku) in his wisdom gave it to Okowa, I expect more explanation, I expect him to talk to Wike first, I expect him to even reach out to some of us so that together we can work as a party.

“But the bottom line for me is that I have gone into hibernation and I am praying and at the end, whatever God directs me, I can assure you that I will do it.”

Ortom also said it was an insult for the PDP presidential candidate to send emissaries to Wike, who was runner-up in the party’s presidential primaries, instead of reaching out to him personally.

“It’s an insult for Atiku Abubakar to send people to a powerful mobiliser like Wike,” the Benue State governor said, adding, “Atiku offended Wike. It is an insult for Atiku to send people to call Wike. Atiku and the leadership of the party at all levels must visit him, Wike is a strong pillar in PDP.”

Wondering why Atiku could not reach out by personally visiting Wike, he said “I am confused about what’s going on…I have resorted to fasting and prayers for God to direct me on my next move.”

According to Ortom, Wike was responsible for resurrecting the party. “Where were these people when the party was going down? Wike brought the party back to life. No person has contributed more than Wike in positioning the party,” he queried.

*Ex-Ekiti gov: Southern presidency or nothing

Meanwhile, the former governor of Ekiti State, Ayo Fayose, stoked another round of curiosity, calling for a southern presidency in 2023.

A no-stranger for political battles, Fayose bore his mind on his Twitter handle, saying since President Muhammad Buhari is from the northern part of the country, and serving a second term as a president, his quitting office should make way for the southern presidency next year.

Buhari got the mantle of leadership as Nigeria’s president in 2015 and was re-elected in 2019, after defeating Atiku to bad re-election.

In the current dispensation, Atiku has emerged as the presidential candidate of the PDP, after the party’s primaries held last month in Abuja.

Reacting to Atiku’s emergence, Fayose said that it is high time for the South to produce the next president after Buhari.

His tweet, “The PDP Constitution provides for a rotational presidency.

“Section 3(c) provides that the party shall pursue its aims and objectives by “adhering to the policy of the rotation and zoning of the party and public elective offices in pursuance of the principle of equity, justice, and fairness.”

He added, “The current president of Nigeria is a second-term Northern Presidency, thus implying that it MUST be a Southern Presidency in 2023 or nothing.

“Awa ‘South’ lo kan’. (It’s our turn) Nigerians should await details soon”,— Peter Ayodele Fayose (@GovAyoFayose) June 29, 2022”, the former governor tweeted, in an apparent reference to a political tendency associated with All Progressives Congress (APC) national leader and flag bearer, Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s regionalist tendency

Fayose’s new call is considered a red herring take because it is considered the fallout of his failed presidential bid, where he was unable to secure the mandate of the 16 delegates from his Ekiti State, having secured zero votes.