Amid Uncertainties on Zoning, PDP Shifts Deadline for Submission of Nomination Forms

By Uche Mbah

The National Working Committee (NWC) of the PDP has shifted the deadline for submission of completed nomination forms for State Congresses to Oct. 1.

The earlier announced date for closing of nomination was September 23.

Kola Ologbondiyan, the Party’s National Publicity Secretary, said in a release in Abuja Sunday that the affected states are Adamawa, Borno, Ebonyi, Kebbi, Kwara, Lagos, and Oyo. This was under powers given to the party by the PDP constitution of 2017 as amended, he said.

Meanwhile, the party has not yet publicly announced a zoning formula for the 2023 presidential elections. Though the Governor Ifeanyi-Ugwuanyi led committee sat recently, sources within the party hierarchy indicate that they are playing hide and seek game with the All Progressives Congress, APC.

“We are waiting to see how APC will zone their offices. If they zone it to South, then we will likely zone it to the North.”

Speculations are rife that the APC may float Osinbajo/Zulum ticket since the odds against former governor of Lagos State, Bola Tinubu, is getting worse by the day, with the general feelings that he was instrumental in bringing in the current Government, apart from health challenges.

But none of these is official.

It was gathered that all delegates from the North supported getting the Chairman from the South, which will leave the only option for the Presidency to come from the North.

Aminu Tambuwal, the Sokoto State Governor, appears to be the runaway choice of the Caliphate, while Atiku Abubakar, the old warhorse is not giving up yet.

But out of the eight delegates for the Ugwuanyi committee, from the Southeast, they were split in the middle with four supporting a Northern presidency.

Nyesom Wike, Governor of Rivers State, insisted on the Chairman coming from the Southwest.

Olagunsoye Oyinola is being fingered. But stakeholders feel Wike is fond of installing Chairmen and dumping them later if they refuse to dance to his tunes.