With the expiration of the ultimatum by a group of former Peoples Democratic party, PDP members who are now members of the All Progressives Congress, APC, the presidency has kept mum over their numerous demands which border on marginalization of the group within the APC family since they decamped from the PDP in the runoff to the 2015 presidential elections.
Prominent members of the PDP at that time decamped to the APC to join the change bandwagon, and the then President Jonathan refused to negotiate with them to keep them back in the fold.
Now, in a Karmic twist, the same group of politicians are set to repeat the same thing under President Buhari. The group, led by Alhaji Kawu Baraje, boasts of such big names as Senate President Bukola Saraki, Speaker of the House Yakubu Dogara, Governor of Sokoto state Aminu Tambuwal and many other legislatures. They had written through the APC chairman, John Oyegun, to the President with the hope that the publicity it generate will force President Buhari to bring them to round table. Like former president Jonathan, Buhari has completely ignored them, not even an acknowledgment of receipt, at least in public.
On the eve of the expiration of the ultimatum-they gave Buhari seven days to act or they will take further action-Timi Frank, the party secretary who is at loggerheads with the chairman quickly called a press conference to present their new line of action. He was the youth leader of the group during the President Jonathan’s heydays. “It is not a mere ultimatum”, he told the press, stressing the that the marginalization and intimidation of their group within the APC informed their decision.
But it is believed the Presidency has replied by proxy. Nasiru el Rufai, Kaduna state governor and generally referred to as the Pretender to the throne by detractors, on a visit to Aso rock, insisted that Buhari will win the election without the nPDP. Already the PDP is in talks with the leadership of the group to iron out points of divergence. But the issue is that the PDP itself is battling with self reinvention, with consultations with over thirty other political parties for another grand merger and of political parties-the type that brought APC to power. Which explains why no presidential aspirant, apart from Atiku Abubakar, has declared under any party banner.
With history set to repeat itself, it appears that the Buhari presidency, despite the security concentration in the hands of his acolytes, may run into a brick wall.
