A former National Legal Adviser of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Jacob Mark, has said that if Peter Obi wants to return to the party, he should not worry about the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Nyesom Wike.
In an interview on Arise News, Mark was responding to the
belief that PDP is in the hands of Wike, who is serving in an APC government.
Asked if the FCT minister is on board with the move to bring
Peter Obi, one of the presidential aspirants for 2027, back to the PDP, and if
he will back his (Obi) candidacy, Mark pointed out that the influence Wike has
on the PDP is exaggerated.
“Wike is not a member of the PDP. This is because in the
last one year or more, he has not attended any PDP meeting,” he said.
“And when I hear people say he’s in charge or he’s in
control of PDP, I really get worried, because it appears we are very lazy in
terms of investigation.
“I am in Kaduna today because we had a state caucus meeting
where we are preparing for our bye-elections in one of the federal constituencies,
and the entire structure of the PDP is here. Nobody is aware of whatever Wike
is doing in Abuja.
“We are concerned about our party, and we are running it
independent of the national body without discussing who is feeding anybody.”
Mark believes that the former Governor is not known in
states in the northern part of the country, wondering why people should think
that such a person controls the PDP.
“Wike has very little, if I can say, zero influence in
Kaduna state as far as the PDP is concerned. So when people talk about Wike
running PDP or PDP being in his hands, I wonder what they really mean,” he
added.
“Is it because he has friends in the National Working
Committee? Or is it because some people have sold their conscience and are
doing things that he wants at the national level, or in Abuja. Wike’s powers or
control are being exaggerated.
“And with due respect to him, I’m not sure he also understands
that he is limited in whatever they are ascribing to him. He does not control
the PDP.
“And with the effort that the founders of the PDP have put
in in the last two months, we can say with all honesty that the PDP is being
regrouped and refocused to look at the issues and be the opposition party that
Nigeria is looking for.
“And given the opportunity in the next few months, when we
properly strategize and refocus, Nigerians will see a more vibrant political
party.
“Honestly, we are so happy. Personally, I’m so happy that
some of the people who have left the PDP have left the party because they were
just a problem.
“Because whether you like it or not, the moment you step
aside, other people take your position, and that is growth. I love progression.
“I love the fact that people are no longer standing still
and blocking every other person from making progress. We have been in this
party from the beginning. Some of us could not grow beyond what we are because
some people refused to move. People refuse to retire. Why is there retirement
in the civil service?
“So the departure of some people has given way for many
other people to grow. We need to see the emergence of a new crop of people, not
a recycling of people who ought to be elders, who are still wearing the jersey
to play the football match.
“So for me, Wike is a hard working person in his own right.
If he says he’s a member of the PDP, that’s his cup of tea, but we don’t see
him. He has not attended NEC in the last one year.
“The PDP has done many things. He has never participated and
does not contribute to anything PDP is doing. In fact, he has boasted that he
has supported opponents of the PDP in several states to make sure the PDP
fails.
“So what kind of member of the party is that? So in Abuja,
maybe they have a problem with him, or they have a relationship with him, but
we don’t know him. In my state and the several states in the country, go to
Plateau, go to Benue, go to any other state, Wike is unknown.”
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