Sir: With the 2023 general elections well and truly a hair’s breadth away,  Nigerians are again seeing all the intrigues they have become accustomed to during elections some of which have unfortunately marked the Nigerian political narrative as one that is dirty.

In 2015, unexpectedly, the Peoples Democratic Party slumped to a historic defeat marking the first time an incumbent had lost elections at that level in Nigeria, and marking a milestone in Nigeria’s democracy which at 16 years was still very young.

The PDP may not have expected its defeat. But it was a defeat dished by Nigerians themselves who were desperate for a change having watched the country lurch from darkness to darkness under a party that was big on propaganda but small on effective policies. Nigerians preferred change of any kind to what was in place then. With the PDP suddenly finding itself in the role of the opposition with the tables and tide firmly turned against it, its struggle to play the role of a fitting opposition has been painful to watch, despite that in over seven years, the APC-led government in Nigeria has been such a catastrophic failure.

A yawning gap has emerged which needed filling by a vigorous opposition. Alas, Africa’s largest opposition party has been nowhere to be found.

Initially, when Atiku won the party’s primaries, his main opponents including Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike, offered their congratulations.  It would seem that it was a bit premature. With the slot of the Vice President having bypassed him,  the Rivers Governor has thrown up an almighty tantrum which culminated in the decision of the governor and his loyalists to pull out of the party’s presidential campaign.

Now, shortly before critical national elections slated for next year, the PDP has a Wike-size problem to solve. If he was isolated, he would not have been such a problem. But he has succeeded in bringing some of the party’s loyalists to hop into his boat and together they are threatening to severely affect the chances of the party at the general elections next year.
 
However, for the PDP, it remains a shame that the friction threatening to fracture it irreparably is being generated by ferrets and foxes from within the party.

By Kene Obiezu (Twitter:@kenobiezu)