Wike vs Atiku: Give Igbos National Chairman Position Or We Take Our Votes Elsewhere – Group Threatens PDP

A socio-political group known as the South East Revival Group (SERG) has threatened that Igbos would not vote for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 elections except certain conditions are met.

SERG in a statement on Friday signed by its President and National Coordinator, Chief Willy Ezugwu rejected the post of Board of Trustees (BOT) chairman given to the region by the PDP, saying anything short of the chairmanship position is not good enough.

The group cautioned that the PDP by its actions so far is following the path of the All Progressives Congress (APC) by deliberately denying Igbos and the southeast deserving leadership positions.

The statement argued that the PDP presidential ticket should have naturally gone to the south but the region was manipulated out of it.

Ezugwu added in the statement that the PDP is showing signs that it has no regard for the region and except the party turns a new leaf, it will suffer the consequences in the forthcoming 2023 polls.

The statement reads, “After denying the Igbos well deserved presidential ticket as well as the position of the running mate to its presidential candidate, it will not be out of place for the South East in particular to produce the national chairman of the PDP.

“We hereby vehemently reject the position of the chairman of the PDP Board of Trustees (BoT) given to the South East.

“For us, therefore, denying Igbos all the decision-making positions in the PDP at this critical time is the most insensitive action of the party if it jettisons the long loyalty of the people of South East to the party since 1999.

“The SERG is fully aligned with the position of the PDP leaders in the South that it is PDP national chairmanship position for South. Otherwise, Igbos will unanimously look elsewhere, knowing that the PDP has opted to tow the path of nepotism and hatred charted against the South East by the ruling APC.

“We strongly warn the PDP not to emulate the APC’s neglect of the Igbos in key party appointments ahead of the 2023 general elections.

Justice For The Southeast

It added that it is an absolute injustice for the southeast to be denied leadership positions in the PDP but expect the people to cast their votes for the PDP.

The statement noted that “And trivialising the agitation by Southern Nigeria, especially the South East, for justice in sharing party positions in the PDP will certainly attract commensurate response from the people of Southern Nigeria in the 2023 general elections.”

We Support Wike

The group went ahead to declare total support for the Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike who insisted that the PDP National Chairman, Iyorchia Ayu is the one that should resign and not the BOT Chairman, Walid Jibrin as it occurred in order to end the crisis rocking the party.

“For us, Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State and other southern leaders of the PDP are right in insisting that the national chairmanship of the party must return to the South ahead of the 2023 presidential election.

“The situation is even more insulting for Southern Nigeria, from the conversations so far, as it has become very obvious that both the presidential candidate of the PDP, Atiku Abubakar, and the National Chairman of the party, Iyorchia Ayu, are not ready to honour their own words to the effect that if the North produces the Presidential candidate of the party, the PDP chairmanship position will go to the South.

“The question now is: if before the general election, these PDP leaders are not ready to honour their own words, how can they be trusted to do the right thing after the PDP has won the presidential election?” SERG questioned.