PDP’s Chief Dan Orbih
“…shopping for a presidential candidate by a ruling political party in an opposition party is a public admittance that the APC has not found any person worthy of running for that position within the APC…”
As the 2023 presidential elections, which will make or ruin Nigeria as a country continued to draw nearer, the National Vice-Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the South-south zone, Chief Dan Orbih, has said that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has no candidate in its fold worthy of winning a presidential election in Nigeria come 2023.
Following the alleged abysmal performance of the President Muhammadu Buhari-led APC since the came to power in 2015 and the deep hatred and lopsided style of their administration, most Nigerians believe Buhari may be the last president the APC would ever produce in Nigeria and that is if Nigeria remained a united country by 2023.
Orbih, who spoke to newsmen in Benin, the Edo State capital on Easter Sunday, said this was more evident since the ruling party was looking outside of its fold for a worthy candidate to represent the APC in the 2023 presidential election.
He was reacting to a story making the rounds that former President Goodluck Jonathan was being wooed to contest the presidential election under the APC platform. The APC has come under a lot of criticisms of late over its performance at the centre, with many Nigerians arguing that it was a mistake to have let the party take over the reins of power.
The worsening security situation in many parts of the country occasioned by terrorist acts, banditry and kidnappings, has left many Nigerians unsure of their safety. Many Nigerians have also lamented the economic situation as the cost of living has continued to escalate, living many more Nigerians below the poverty line.
Speaking further, Orbih said that shopping for a presidential candidate by a ruling political party in an opposition party was a public admittance that the party has not found any person worthy of running for that position within their ranks.
The PDP chieftain said that the 2023 presidential election would be a very serious election, hence the ruling party was shopping for a presidential candidate from the PDP, “because they have no presidential material”, a situation that has been compounded by the apparent failure of the APC federal government to deliver on its electoral promises to the people.
He noted that the PDP boasts of qualified Nigerians in its fold that could make a difference in governance and move the nation forward. He added that this was why the PDP as a party was very formidable with other political parties shopping for candidates from the party.
“So, I am not surprised that they are looking for people in the PDP to come and contest the presidential ticket in their party. It shows clearly that they are aware that in their party, they don’t have anybody that can win the next presidential election,” Orbih said.
The South-south PDP leader also faulted those criticising a governor of one of the South-south states for saying he will not support a former president of the country if he decides to pursue his political ambition in another party. According to him, it will be unfair to expect a loyal PDP member to go and vote for a candidate in another party.
