News coming in has it that Kogi State
governor, Captain Idris Wada, is currently under
immense pressure by leaders and critical stakeholders
of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to step down
from the forthcoming governorship primaries of the
Party rescheduled to hold on Monday, 14th of
September.
Sources in the party disclosed to DAILY POST that
pressure is being mounted on Wada to dump his
second term ambition because they are of the opinion
that if he does not, he may be disgraced at the party
primaries by his main challenger, Alhaji Jubrin Isah
Echocho, whose camp is said to swelling by the day.
Another reason for the call is said to be the belief that
the governor lacks concrete electoral value to face the
candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Alhaji
Abubakar Audu, in the November 21 election, if he
should be fielded by the PDP.
According to sources in Abuja last night, most of the
support base Governor Wada counted on for second
term have been eroded with leaders and stakeholders
like former Governor, Ibrahim Idris, Billionaire
businessman, Chief Jide Omokore, Chief Tunde Ayeni,
Senator Smart Adeyemi and a host of others, turning
their back on the embattled governor.
According to a source, who spoke to DAILY POST on
telephone, former Governor, Ibrahim Idris decided to
turn his back on Wada because of what he termed
Wada’s affront in terminating a contract he gave to his
son, Sule Idris.
According to the source, Ibro, as Ibrahim Idris is
popularly known, is angry that the contract for the
building of a specialist diagnostic centre in Lokoja, the
Kogi State capital, given to his son, was revoked. Also,
the former governor was said to have accused Wada of
failing to liquidate the balance of the N4 billion he
spent on his election.
The decision of Idris to back out of the second term
ambition of the governor is said to be a major source of
worry because he is said not to have any political
structure of his own but only relying on that of the
former.
Speaking further, the source confided in DAILY POST
that the former governor also enlisted the support of
Senator Smart Adeyemi, Tunde Ayeni and Jide
Omokore, who are said to be ready to break the bank
for Echocho to defeat Wada at the primaries.
Another source, who spoke to DAILY POST in Abuja last
night, said the postponement of the primaries from
Thursday to Monday, was a big saving grace for
Governor Wada, insisting that he would have been
roundly defeated if the primary had held on Thursday.
The source, who is a delegate to the primaries,
however said the only way the governor can avoid a
defeat is for him to step down from the primaries,
adding that the caliber of delegates the party is
parading for the primaries are not hungry people who
can be swayed by some thousands of naira.
“The truth is that we have delegates who are not
hungry people or those looking for a few thousands to
make them vote for a particular aspirant. Things are
different this time around. No aspirant can buy our
conscience; we are poised to do what is best for the
party and the state.”
The source also disclosed that most of them, who are
delegates, only pretend to be working for the governor
because they have to be politically correct. He said
they are actually all queuing behind Alhaji Jubrin Isah,
who they believe can stand Abubakar Audu of the APC
and defeat him.
Reacting to the pressure put on Wada to step down, the
governor’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr.
Jacob Edi, told DAILY POST last night that the governor
is on course with his ambition and that nothing has or
can derail him.
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“The governor is not under pressure at all; he is on
course and will win the primaries any day it is
conducted. He is not perturbed or moved by any of the
propaganda making the rounds. He is focused on the
task ahead,” Edi said.
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