By Kolawole Ojebisi
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has stated that it played a crucial role in moulding the political career of the 2023 presidential candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party, Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso.
The Acting National Chairman, the PDP, Umar Damagum, made this claim during an interview with BBC Hausa on Tuesday.
He also maintained that Kwankwaso’s NNPP, even by merging with four other parties, can’t muster the votes needed to wrest the reins of power from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) without joining forces with the PDP.
Kwankwaso’s comments during an interview with BBC Hausa Service on Monday prompted Damagum’s reactions.
The former Kano State governor had criticized the PDP and its leaders, expressing his frustration over the humiliation he faced in 2015, which ultimately led to his defection from the party.
Damagum stated that despite the challenges the PDP has faced, the party is still very much alive. He questioned that if the party was able to survive Kwankwaso’s departure, why would anyone believe it is irrelevant now?
He stated, “People are entitled to their opinions, but I want to remind him of the past. When they left the PDP in 2015, if the party didn’t die back then, during a time they thought they had weakened it, I don’t see why anyone would claim it is dead now.
“Let’s not forget that the PDP remains the only party capable of winning elections if you exclude the ruling APC.
“That said, there is no party better than the PDP for Kwankwaso. The party nurtured his political career and brought him to where he is today. We still hope he will return to work with us to rebuild our party and confront this oppressive government.”
Damagum highlighted the PDP’s resilience and continued influence, pointing to its lasting structure and widespread presence throughout Nigeria.
He continued, “The PDP is the only party that has consistently won elections without being in power. Senator Kwankwaso may have left, but how many states did he win with his new party? The facts speak for themselves.
“For over two decades, the PDP has remained steadfast, maintaining its identity and producing governors and lawmakers in every part of the country.
“Even if four parties merge without the PDP, they cannot win an election. We’ve seen this play out repeatedly. Where are those parties now? Even their alliances with other parties have not delivered the desired results.
“I admit that some of his claims about the challenges we faced back then are valid. As the Deputy National Chairman (North) at the time, my powers were limited, but we tried to resolve the issues. Unfortunately, those efforts fell short. He himself acknowledged this in previous interviews.”
Despite these differences, Damagum expressed hope for a possible reconciliation with Kwankwaso.
