Ayu’s removal not possible, Atiku tells Wike, others

The presidential candidate of the People Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, has said that the talk about the removal of the party National Chairrman, Iyorchia Ayu, is currently no longer possible.

The PDP presidential candidate said he had moved on from the issue, which has been threatening the chances of the party in the 2023 presidential elections.

At least five of the party’s governors demand a change in the opposition party’s leadership.

The resignation of Ayu as PDP National Chairman was cited by the governors as a requirement for peace to return to the party by those who withdrew from Atiku’s campaign team.

Seyi Makinde of Oyo, one of them, officially endorsed Asiwaju Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the 2023 Presidential election, and Nyesom Wike of Rivers has stated numerous times that the PDP cannot win without the backing of the resentful governors.

However, Atiku claimed that it is currently difficult for the party to change its leadership in an interview with VOA Hausa.

“We are yet to resolve the matter. But we have moved on, I don’t have any worries about that anymore. And at this junction it’s improper to talk about leadership change in the party while elections are fast approaching,” he said.

During the interview Atiku said he would confront the insecurity issue in the country by convening a constitutional review so that states and local governments, to whom we intend to give the imprimatur to run their security affairs, would be able to do so. But this requires a rejig of the constitution.

“Before we embark on this, we intend to employ more boots on ground, especially in the area of policing and civil defence, all of which we want to equip properly,” he added.

The former vice president continued by adding that his administration would work closely with the legal system to ensure that criminals were tried quickly and that the death sentence should be applied to crimes related to terrorism.