How PDP Leaders In The North Betrayed President Jonathan.

The victory of General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd), the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the March 28, 2015 election has been described as a manifestation of the betrayal by the leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the Northern geo-political zones.

Since the declaration of the results which showed that APC polled a total of 15,051,378 (Fifteen million, fifty one thousand, three hundred and seventy-eight) votes while PDP polled 12,827,422 (Twelve million, eight hundred and twenty-seven thousand, four hundred and twenty-two) votes, Midweek Nigerian Horn has been sampling the views some political commentators and analysts across the state and the general consensus is that President Goodluck Jonathan lost the election to the act of betrayal orchestrated by the top echelon of PDP leadership in the Northern zones.

Basing their argument on what they declared as facts,  the respondents were strongly convinced that PDP would have won the election had the PDP in the North supported their party and candidate, stressing that it is inexplicable how the top politicians in the North PDP could so brazenly lose their states, local governments and wards to the opposition APC.

According to one of them who pleaded anonymity, “The results are simply embarrassing. Of course, embarrassing not to the president, but embarrassing to the PDP leaders in the North. I mean, how can anybody believe that APC won those PDP states in the North without the agreement and support of the PDP governors and leaders there. How? How can Buhari win in Niger State where Babangida and Abdusalam come from? How can Buhari win in Kaduna, Jigawa, Gombe, even Katsina and Kano without the support of the state governors and PDP leaders in the state? It couldn’t have been possible without their support”

Also hinging his opinion on the near impracticability of APC and Buhari winning large numbers of votes in key PDP except with the collaboration and cooperation of PDP leaders in the North, another respondent insisted that PDP defeated itself and not that APC won on the merit of being a better party.

“In fact, I don’t really know what to say. But all I can say is that PDP leaders did the hatchet job and delivered power to the North. Simple! Some people sound worried or surprised. I am not. If we may recall, for a long time the North has been arguing that Jonathan gave them a promise to do only a term. The way they have been going about their agitation plus other body languages of the PDP leaders in the North, it was clear they wanted power by all means and at all cost. But to appear credible they decided to hide under the guise of democratic election. My worry is that it is an act of betrayal to their own cause. It is their shame, “he stated.

It may be recalled that within the period of the electioneering campaigns, some PDP leaders in the North were frequently speaking from two sides of their cheek. At one time they will declare that they will work for Buhari but at another time they will seen drumming support for Jonathan. This has been recalled by one of the respondents and he has stated that such acts were the signal to what played out in the presidential election, that saw less favoured Buhari clinching victory.

“Everybody knew that Buhari did not deserve to win. He did not provide Nigerians the reasons to convince them to vote him in as president. But with the incredible loss of nearly all PDP states in the North, there is no other explanation than that the PDP leaders in the North compromised their integrity and betrayed their cause. It was a well planned betrayal. The Babangidas of this world, the Lamidos of this world, the Shekaraus of the world, the Abachas of this world. With such people in the different states why could PDP win in their states? As I said, it is not that Buhari won. But PDP won for APC, “he asserted.

For this particularly sensitive reason, this respondent wished that his be not published. He went a step further and introduced the angle of ethnicity and religion, arguing confidently that the massive loss of all PDP states in the North, except Plateau, Taraba and Nasarawa, to APC was the product of a plan that has been in the mill since 2013 to ensure that the North and Muslims regain power in 2015.

“Since the trouble over tenure erupted between Jonathan and his group and some very important members of the PDP in the North like Bukola Saraki, Aliyu Babangida, IBB’s brother who is the governor of Niger, Sule Lamido, Kwankwaso and Sokoto governor, I think his name Wamakko. Since that time, I knew it was all about ethnic struggle for power as well as religious struggle for power. The way the presidential election went showed that no matter the cost to even their PDP, they were only hell bent on returning power to the North and thereby to Islam,” he explained.

The above quoted respondent also expressed the fear that except the Northern PDP leaders changed their decision and allow their states to win the governorship election and the State Houses of Assembly election, then the power in the hands of the North will be too big to warrant their achievement of whatever they are bent on achieving, like the implementation of the Islamization project across the nation.

“I don’t have the structure of the winners of the National Assembly elections. But I just hope the PDP has an overriding majority there. Then, except the PDP leaders in the North decide to allow their party to win the governorship and Assembly seats, there is real danger awaiting the states of the South. It means that if all the States in the North or most of them are allowed to be won by APC both at the governorship and State Assembly, they may do and undo at their will. This will be made worse if the APC has the majority in the National Assembly. Nothing can stop the North from implementing the Islamization of the country, for instance. So, as I said, there is reason to worry at the decision and action of PDP leaders in the North, “he stressed.

It really worries many pundits how all the leaders of the ruling PDP in the North decided to stab one of their own, the sitting president of the country in the back in a very crucial presidential election. The analysts concluded that the act was a well planned betrayal to enthrone power in the North and probably commence the programme of spreading Islam in Nigeria. They are also disturbed by the consideration of what are the remote reasons for their game, creating room for so much speculations and conjectures. It is believed that the following days and weeks will unfold more of the reasons for the betrayal of President Jonathan by the PDP leaders in the North.

Written by Ogu Bundu Nwadike