Taiwo Popoola, Olaleye Idowu
Former National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Abdullahi Ganduje, has blasted the 2023 presidential candidate of the New Nigerian Peoples Party, NNPP, Rabiu Kwankwaso.
This was as he described Kwankwaso’s politics and governance style as inconsistent and directionless.
Ganduje made this statement during a stakeholders’ meeting of APC leaders in Kano.
He also refuted speculations that Kwankwaso might defect to the APC, adding that he lacks consistency in returning to the ruling party after repeatedly ridiculing it.
“Now they want to return. If they come, we’ll welcome them as ‘madmen who swallowed their vomit,” Ganduje said.
Meanwhile, a former Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Diran Odeyemi, has said that the PDP has nine lives, hence it will continue to live on.
He stated that the party’s real strength lies in its grassroots participation rather than directives from the top leadership.
Speaking during an interview on TVC News, Odeyemi explained that the PDP has always drawn its legitimacy from the involvement of members at the ward and local government levels.
“The PDP has always been a party that thrives on the participation of its grassroots members. While the national leadership plays a role in coordination, the real decisions emerge from the local chapters. That is what gives the party its resilience and legitimacy.”
He warned against attempts to centralise control of party congresses, stressing that such a move could disrupt internal democracy and alienate members.
Odeyemi also dismissed fears that leadership disputes at the national level could weaken the party, noting that successful congresses in states like Ondo and Adamawa showed that PDP structures at the local level remain intact.
“No matter the crisis at the top, politics is local. As long as congresses are conducted peacefully at the grassroots and members are satisfied with their leaders, PDP remains strong.”
He added that the party would overcome its current challenges, predicting that its upcoming national convention would usher in a new beginning.
“PDP has nine lives; there’s no way it will die. By the time the present leadership leaves in December, grassroots leaders who understand the importance of peace will take charge, and Nigerians will see that the PDP has risen again.”
