PDP In Trouble, Loses Zamfara State, As Governor Defects To APC; May Go To Court

By Gideon Njoku

The main opposition Party, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, is in trouble. The year, 2021 has not been a good year for it. It is losing its members, especially, high profile members, including State Governors.

On Sunday, June 26, the Party lost Zamfara State to the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC.

After a long dilly-dallying and strong speculations, Zamfara State Governor, Bello Matawalle  finally dumped the PDP for the APC.

Even though the Governor has not publicly announced it, but it is official. Making the announcement of his defection to the APC, on Sunday, was the Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on Digital and New Media, Bashir Ahmad. He welcomed the Governor to the APC in two short sentences on his Facebook.

He wrote: “Zamfara is back home. Welcome Matallawe.”

Indeed  Zamfara State was roundly won by the APC during the 2019 Governorship election, but 24 hours to the swearing-in of the Governor, the Supreme Court disqualified him over Party squabbles. The Apex Court, also, disqualified all other APC elected members, from the National Assembly to the State House of Assembly, and ordered that the runners-up in the election be sworn-in as duly elected. That was how Matallawe became Governor. He became an accidental Governor.

It was an excited, and humbled Matallawe who, months after he was sworn into office, asked Allah to punish him if he ever abandons the PDP. “May Allah punish me if I ever abandon PDP”, he swore, to the applause of Party supporters.

But like most politicians, he has quickly forgotten his request  from Allah.

The Governor’s journey to dumping the PDP for the APC, began many months ago. Pointing accusing fingers at a South-south PDP Governor, he said he was being suffocated in the party as the South-south Governor  wanted to control his state for him. He accused him of being autocratic and vowed to leave the Party if he continued.

Last month when the speculations continued, he said he was still “exploring.”Apparently, the exploration came to an end the day a number of APC  Governors, led by its Interim National Chairman, Yobe State Governor, Mai Mala Bunu, visited him. He gave them a firm yes, as an answer, a source told this Magazine last week.

The Governor is likely, this Magazine gathered, to publicly announce his new Party on Tuesday. What is not known is if the State’s National and House of Assembly members would join him, as well as members of his Cabinet.

Within one month, the PDP has lost two State Governors to the APC. The first was the Cross River State Governor, Professor Ben Ayade who also cited interference from a South-south Governor.

Earlier before the defection of Ayade,  Ebonyi State Governor, Engr Dave Umahi, had, also, dumped the party for the APC.

Aside from the Governors, a number of high profile members of the party had dumped it for the APC.

The latest, on Friday, was Senator Peter Nwaoboshi, the Senator representing Delta North in the Senate.

Prince Kassim Afegbua, an estranged PDP member, and a former Commissioner for Information, Edo State, under former Governor Adams Oshiomhole, in his reaction to the defections, asked for the sack of the National Chairman of the PDP, Prince Uche Secondus, allegeging that he has killed the party, literally.

A source told this Magazine that PDP plans to go to Court to sack Matallawe using as a peg, the Supreme Court judgement which declared that the APC had no candidate in the 2019 Governorship election.