Atiku’s running mate: PDP raises panel as Wike, Okowa lobby for VP slot
The All Progressives Congress and the Peoples Democratic Party on Thursday stepped up moves to choose running mates for their presidential candidates.
The PDP set up a committee comprising its governors, the National Working Committee and the Board of Trustees members as well as former governors with the mandate of picking its vice-presidential candidate.
The committee met on Wednesday and Thursday in Abuja. The PDP spokesman, Debo Ologunagba, confirmed the setting up of the committee to The PUNCH last night.
It was gathered that the Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, and his Delta State counterpart, Ifeanyi Okowa, had intensified lobby of the PDP stakeholders as part of moves to clinch the post.
On his part, the APC presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, on Thursday, began the search for his running mate with a meeting with northern governors.
As Tinubu met northern governors, the Independent National Electoral Commission on Thursday gave parties June 17 deadline to submit the names of their presidential candidates and running mates.
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The commission had on May 27 extended the deadline for parties to conduct primaries from June 4 to June 9.
It also fixed June 17 as the deadline for parties to submit lists of their candidates.
At the PDP primary held on May 29, former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, who emerged as the presidential candidate, polled 371 votes while his closest challenger, Wike, came second with 237 votes.
On Wednesday, Tinubu defeated aspirants including a former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi and the Vice-President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo.
On the efforts to reconcile the aspirants who lost during the primaries, the party said a reconciliation process was ongoing.
It was gathered that Wike and Okowa had reached out to their fellow governors as part of efforts to clinch the post.
A close source to Wike told The PUNCH that the governor was in Abuja lobbying to be named Atiku’s running mate.
The source stated, “The governor is not in town as we speak. It is not out of place if he is pushing to become the running mate of the PDP presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar.
“But it will be unfair if he (Wike) is not picked as Atiku’s running mate going by his contributions to the party, both in terms of finance and other levels of support.
“Don’t forget that he came second in the PDP presidential primary in Abuja, so that tells you his pedigree,” he stated.
Kelvin Ebiri, the Special Assistant on Media to Wike kept mum over the choice of running mate for Atiku.
When contacted by one of Punch correspondents if his principal should be picked as the vice presidential running mate, although Ebiri picked his call, he did not speak.He also did not reply a text message sent to him
