Some political and civil society groups have said the Labour Party has assumed the status of the major opposition party in Nigeria and not the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, any longer.
They made their positions known on Sunday in separate interviews with THE WHISTLER.
The PDP came to power in 1999, when Nigeria returned to civil rule, and retained the presidency for 16 years until 2015 when it lost to the APC.
Yet, eight years after the APC took power, many Nigerians believe PDP has not discharged its role as the main opposition party effectively.
Secretary-General of the Conference Of Nigeria Political Parties (CNPP) Willy Ezugwu, in an interview with THE WHISTLER, described the PDP as opposition in theory and not in practice.
Ezugwu noted that the PDP has ceded the status of the main opposition party to the Labour Party (LP).
The LP was regarded as one of the parties that merely made up the numbers on INEC’s list of registered political parties until Peter Obi, a former PDP chieftain, joined just before the 2023 general elections.
Speaking with THE WHISTLER, Ezugwu said, “PDP is not playing any opposition. The party is in total disarray. They are not one body; They are not together.
“It is quite unfortunate because PDP is supposed to be a viable, strong opposition to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC). I can even say it is the Labour Party (LP) that is now the major opposition party.”
A stalwart of the PDP, former Rivers State governor Nyesom Wike, who led an intra-party revolt against the party’s presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar before and during the 2023 general elections, has just been appointed Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) by President Bola Tinubu.
Wike had claimed that PDP leaders approved his involvement in the Tibubu-led APC government.
He also revealed that PDP governors nominated persons for appointment by Tinubu.
Ezugwu described the development as unfortunate, adding that the PDP’s failure to effectively challenge the APC was not in the interest of Nigeria’s democracy.
“You know in Nigeria all the political parties usually flock around the ruling party, which is not right. That is not how to grow democracy. In every democracy, there must be a strong opposition to make the government sit up.
“As things stand now, PDP is the opposition in theory not in practice.
“Even before the election it was clear that the PDP was totally divided – the former chairman of the party (Iyorchia Ayu) was not genuine. He was behaving like somebody who was working for a master instead of the party and that is why most of the governors fell out with the party, particularly PDP governors in the southern part of the country.”
Ezugwu blamed insincerity for the failure of PDP leaders to reconcile with the G5 governors even after the presidential election.
Led by Wike, the G5 governors, including Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (Enugu), Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia), Samuel Ortom (Benue), and Seyi Makinde (Oyo), did not support Atiku during the election after Ayu refused to accede to their demand that he should resign as national chairman.
Ezugwu added, “That is how they started having a major problem and unfortunately they couldn’t come together until after the elections. And even after the elections, if they were sincere to themselves they would have been able to mend fences but they could not.
“Is it Wike that has now taken appointment from the APC government that you will now expect to go back to being a PDP member 100 per cent? It is not possible. The same applies to Ugwuanyi, Ikpeazu, Ortom, and Makinde.
“So it is very unfortunate that PDP couldn’t show a good example of an opposition party.”
An activist, Deji Adeyanju, and a former senator from Kaduna State, Shehu Sani, also questioned PDP’s status as an opposition party after Wike’s revelations on the party’s leaders’ alleged romance with the ruling APC.
Adeyanju described the PDP as ‘useless’, while Sani said the party has no business challenging Tinubu’s election in court.
Also speaking with THE WHISTLER, an activist, Olu Omotayo, President, Civil Rights Realisation and Advancement Network (CRRAN), suggested that the PDP has not provided effective opposition to the APC because the party’s attention is focused more on the outcome of the suit is filed to challenge Tinubu’s victory before the presidential election petition tribunal.
Omotayo expressed hopes that, after the tribunal delivers its verdict, the party will provide more constructive opposition to the government, depending on the outcome of the judgement.
“Attention is focused more on the court now than on issues of governance and what is happening in the country. So maybe I think after the tribunal has delivered its verdict, we will start seeing more constructive criticism of government policy from the PDP.
“The two major opposition political parties (PDP and LP) are focusing on what is happening in court for now and I think that is why we have not seen much in terms of constructive opposition,” Omotayo said.
However, the leadership of the PDP did not respond to suggestions that the party is not effective as an opposition party.
THE WHISTLER contacted the National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Debo Ologunagba, to get the party’s reaction on the matter.
Asked if the PDP is discharging its role as the main opposition to the ruling APC effectively, the party’s spokesman said, “That is for you to decide, not for me. That is your judgement, you can take your position on that.”
THE WHISTLER also sought Ologunagba’s comments on Wike’s claims that the PDP leadership approved his involvement in the APC government and that PDP governors nominated individuals for appointment by Tinubu.
Ologunagba said the PDP will address the matter at the appropriate time.
“Our party will come up with a position; when we are ready we will inform you. We will always do that,” he said