PDP intensifies search for northern presidential candidate

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has begun the process of identifying all presidential aspirants in the Northern part of the country with a view to deciding on the right presidential candidate for the 2019 election.

Chairman of the party’s Board of Trustees (BoT), Ambassador Walid Jibril, who disclosed this in Abuja yesterday said that leaders of the PDP in the North have made up their minds about picking the best material for the Presidency in 2019 to avoid producing “ a no do well President”

Receiving some party members called ‘PDP Ward to Ward’, Jibril said that most former leaders of the party who defected to other parties had indicated intentions to return hinting that “when they come back, then we shall all come together and settle the issue of leadership.

“We shall then look at it so closely because at that time, whoever want to become the president of Nigeria will now depend on all of us. We all will decide who will be the president of Nigeria and we have set the machinery already”

“As a party, we agreed that the president of Nigeria should come from the North. I enjoin you to support the North to bring and give you a very capable president, never a no do well president, a good qualitative president.’’

Prominent PDP members reported to be interested in seeking PDP’s ticket to contest the presidential election in 2019 include former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, former Jigawa State Governor, Sule Lamido, former Kano State Governor, Ibrahim Shekarau, and incumbent Gombe State Governor, Ibrahim Dankwambo.

The PDP BoT boss said efforts are in top gear to bring back all those who left the party.

He ruled out any form of discrimination against those returning to the party.