Wike, Ortom, other ‘dissident’ party members lead PDP guber campaign in Imo, Bayelsa, Kogi

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has included its rebelled members into its national campaign councils for Bayelsa, Imo and Kogi State governorship election holding on November 11.

Former Rivers State governor Nyesom Wike, whose name appeared in the list of ministerial nominees sent to the Senate by President Bola Tinubu-led All Progressives Congress (APC) government, is one of the 122-member PDP National Campaign Council for Bayelsa State.

The campaign council is headed by Taraba State governor Kefas Agbu, with three other governors – Seyi Makinde (Oyo), Sheriff Oborovewori (Delta), and Siminalayi Fubara (Rivers), as members.

Former Benue State governor Samuel Ortom, his Enugu and Abia State counterparts, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi and Okezie Ikpazu, who were among the aggrieved PDP governors who refused to campaign for the party’s candidate in the 2023 presidential election, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, also made the list.

Ortom is a member of the party’s campaign council for Kogi State, which is headed by Governor Ademola Adeleke of Osun State. He is assisted by his Plateau State counterpart, Caleb Mutfswang, while Governors Bala Mohammed (Bauchi) and Ahmadu Finitri (Adamawa), are members of the council.

Ugwuanyi and Ikpazu will be campaigning for the PDP candidate in the Imo State governorship election, which has Zamfara State governor Lawal Dauda as Chairman. Three other governors, Umo Bassey (Akwa Ibom), Godwin Obaseki (Edo) and Peter Mbah (Enugu), as members.

Wike and his co-travellers were members of the PDP presidential campaign council in 2023, but they refused to work for the party.

Though he has not officially declared for the ruling party, his acceptance to serve in Tinubu’s cabinet questions his continued loyalty for the PDP.

The party has not yet taken a decision to discipline its members who worked against its success in the last general elections, but there have been calls that Wike and his group should be eased out of the party.

The 369-member campaign council, according to release by the PDP National Publicity Secretary Debo Ologunagba, will be inaugurated next week, at the party’s national secretariat.