By John Alechenu

One of the original nine statesmen who laid the foundation of what eventually became the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in 1998, and former Jigawa State Governor, Alhaji Sule Lamido, speaks about on the party’s current challenges and what needs to be done to set things right. Excerpts:

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A lot has been happening in your party the PDP in recent days – the most notable being the sealing of the party’s National Secretariat a few hours before the much-awaited National Executive Council meeting was to be held. It’s an iconic building, and ironically, the action was carried out by a prominent member of your party. Was this something you would have envisaged?

Well, what can one say? This is just the drama of Nigerian politics. Here is someone who was honoured by the PDP, brought into relevance by the PDP, and now turns around to fight the very party that made him. Nyesom Wike is, quite frankly, a disaster. What he has done is un-African and un-Nigerian.

I don’t understand how someone, simply because of his ambition, can take things so personally and act so destructively. There used to be a party culture that prioritized collective good – something altruistic – but that seems lost now.

To seal the PDP secretariat – a party that produced you, nurtured you – no matter your grievances, no matter your bitterness, it’s like destroying your own home. He claims he financed the party. But is it wrong for a son to take care of his mother? Does it now mean the mother must submit to the son and take orders from him simply because he’s providing her clothing?

Wike is thinking in a very warped way. He lacks the values and traditions that define our political culture. I’m glad, however, that President Tinubu intervened. The office was reopened by his order. The very man Wike is trying to please by destroying his own political family is the one saying, “No, you can’t do that.”

So, in a way, Tinubu has exposed him – showing that Wike is unreliable, without tradition, without pedigree. And now, Tinubu too may likely abandon him very soon.

I read part of your book, your encounter with the late Arthur Nzeribe, a member of the defunct Social Democratic Party during your time as National Secretary. He was the promoter of the Association for Better Nigeria which worked at cross purposes with the party. The party found a way to tame him. Do you think that tradition – of putting party first – has been lost in the PDP?

You’re right. During our time, the party was supreme. It held full authority, and everyone respected it, whether in the North, South, East, or West. Anyone – no matter how influential – who crossed the party line would be sanctioned.

Today, people openly working against the PDP are still being tolerated. Someone like Wike, who claims to love the PDP but is undermining it, should be expelled by the NWC. Why hasn’t that happened?

Look at the Board of Trustees (BoT). People like Samuel Ortom, who declared support for Tinubu in 2023, are still members. That’s why I’ve said I will not attend any PDP meeting unless Wike is expelled and people like Ortom are removed from the BOT. I remain a PDP member, but I will not participate in party functions or answer calls to meetings while these individuals remain in leadership.

How can I sit with someone like Ortom in the BOT to discuss the future of PDP? Or someone like Anyanwu, who is rejected in his zone and is now being imposed by another zone? These are impostors.

Some have argued that the FCT Minister’s attitude towards the party is a direct consequence of how he was treated during the last Presidential primary. Would you say the PDP has regrets for refusing to pick Wike as Vice-presidential candidate?

The issue was never personal. The PDP is a very organic, well-structured, and organized party. It can win elections with whoever it fields, as long as the party makes that decision collectively. When you try to bend the will of an entire party to appease one individual, you lose sight of the broader input and value of the party system.

It’s not about who came or shouted the loudest; it’s about identifying someone who fits the consensus for leadership-someone with the right temperament and comportment. The office of the president and vice president is too important to be determined by emotions. Wike, at that time, was not suitable. He was too temperamental, too uncouth, and lacked the cultural understanding and maturity required for that role.

Leading Nigeria requires an appreciation of its cultural diversity and an ability to carry the national spirit. Wike might be a potential candidate for the future, but in 2023, Okowa was the better choice. He’s more disciplined, mature, and gentlemanly. He represents the values required for the office-understanding, pedigree, and a calm demeanour. Leadership is about character, not just personality.

One thing that worked for the PDP at the beginning was the presence of individuals who put Nigeria first and made sacrifices for the greater good. What changed? When did the decline we are witnessing today begin?

The decline began when people who didn’t understand the PDP’s values joined the party. They lacked the cultural grounding in sacrifice, collectivity, and the bigger picture. Some joined the party and started financing it, then acted as if they owned it. Take Wike, for instance-before PDP, he was virtually unknown. Whatever wealth he has now is thanks to the PDP.

It’s like a child bragging that he feeds his father. Before that child was born, the father had been feeding him. That’s life. When children grow, they care for their parents. But when a child boasts about that care, it becomes problematic. Wike lacks the temperament and leadership traits we need.

Frankly, Wike should be expelled from the PDP. He has committed several anti-party offences-abusing everyone, threatening havoc in Bauchi, and fighting other party members. He’s destructive. Without the PDP, he wouldn’t be where he is today. That’s why I caution Tinubu-he must be careful. People are beginning to see the danger in keeping Wike around. He may eventually turn on Tinubu too.

I’m glad Tinubu has started realizing this and called him to order-especially after he closed a PDP office. That was a clear abuse of power. PDP has built Nigeria-three presidents, several governors, and ministers-without PDP, Nigeria’s political history is incomplete. PDP restored, reconciled, and stabilized the country. Tinubu needs to understand this.

Within the PDP, there seems to be a culture of people leaving the party at critical moments, only to return and pick up tickets to contest elections. What are your thoughts on this sort of behaviour?

That behaviour stems from fundamental breaches in the party-dating back to 2014. These breaches created indiscipline and encouraged people to exit and return at will. For the party to move forward, the NWC must expel Wike and others like Ortom and the former governor of Edo, who are now professing loyalty to the APC. These individuals are undermining the party.

I’ve stopped attending party meetings. I still consider myself a PDP member, but I won’t sit in the same room with these characters.

Some believe Nigeria is drifting toward a one-party state. Do you share this fear? Is it possible?

If the ruling party is delivering excellent governance, then the popularity that follows is earned, and there’s no problem. But what we see is not natural political evolution-it’s state interference. The government is using public institutions and resources to destroy opposition parties.

PDP, ironically, is Tinubu’s insurance cover. If he destroys it, he weakens his future. A robust PDP helps stabilize Nigeria. Destroying the opposition puts democracy at risk and endangers his administration.

The presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, who incidentally was once a member of the PDP, recently accused the government of the day of orchestrating the crisis in both the LP and the PDP. Do you agree with him? 

You don’t need a prophet to see it. The government is forcing and blackmailing people using agencies like EFCC. People are being pushed into the APC through threats and intimidation. It’s an abuse of state power.

If APC wants to compete fairly with PDP, fine. But the president is for all Nigerians-he shouldn’t use his office to suppress opposition. That’s dangerous-for democracy and him.

There’s talk of a northern coalition of opposition parties ahead of 2027. Do you see wisdom in that?

Yes, but it should not be a northern coalition. It should be a Nigerian coalition. The suffering in Nigeria is not limited to the North; the South is equally affected. So the effort must be national. Even if the initiative begins in the North, the objective should be to save Nigeria as a whole.

The PDP Governors’ Forum as well as party organs used to be a powerful force. But now, personal ambition seems to have weakened it. How do you think the party can be restored?

It’s not a crime to have ambition-that’s natural. But you must understand the context. From 1999 to 2014, the Nigerian presidency under PDP provided shelter and authority for governors and party members. That structure-what I call the “canopy”-is now gone. The leadership that should be steering the party, from the presidency or vice presidency, has also disappeared.

Without that umbrella of unity, everyone is on his own, that’s why the party feels fractured now.

Politics now was a bit different in the first and second republics. The party had greater control of its members and was largely obeyed. What do you think happened?

If you look at the politics of the Second Republic it was built on personalities. It was built on the character and personality traits of the party leader. For example, Chief Obafemi Awolowo of the UPN right from his days in the Action Group was a force to be reckoned with. He was somebody with a very strong moral background, a man with a strong character therefore; members of his party knew they were following a leader. The same was the case with Malam Aminu Kano of the PRP. His followers saw in him an embodiment of all they wished for in a leader. Those parties were built on the philosophies espoused by their leaders. The PDP was created in the aftermath of the June 12 crisis. It was a product of a consensus. People from the UPN, the SDP, NPN were all in the PDP. They were there in the beginning. They came together to save the country from a particular problem which was June 12. They built that trust among Nigerians.

How can this trust be rebuilt and the party returned to the right path?

Let us follow the party’s rules, culture and traditions. Let us follow our rules and punish those who deserve punishment, those who have been causing us problems Wike and members of his G-5 kick them out of the party to restore our party’s dignity. You cannot make progress by dealing with a person who is running with the deer and hunting with the hound. Somebody who is in the PDP, working with Tinubu not even the APC is incomprehensible.

There have been concerns about the weakening of our institutions especially our courts when it comes to political issues. Do you share this view?

I feel the courts are now up and doing. They are trying to restore their dignity and character, because they have now said, on issues of party management, by their own rules and traditions, we have no business with it, simple. It is very clear; that the court has no business with the internal affairs of political parties. So, that is why if tomorrow, the party sacks Anyanwu, he is sacked because he can’t contest that decision in court based on this judgment. Those who have been causing unnecessary trouble should face the Disciplinary Committee and be sacked. Before now, such people rushed to court to stop the process but now the court has said no, we have no business with you, run your party according to your constitution. If the party sacks Anyanwu, Wike and co they are sacked! All that is required is the courage to do so that’s all.

What do you make of the recent political summit by the ruling APC and the endorsements for a second term for President Bola Tinubu?

They are panicking. You see, they are very panicky, and that is why they are using public institutions to coerce people into joining them. Look at Abuja now. It is nauseating, it is not up to two years out of four years of tenure, and you have posters of Tinubu all over the place. In Nigeria we have more serious issues they are yet to tackle but they are flooding our streets with posters and billboards.

They are not concerned with governance and providing services for the people who elected them but with fanfare. If I were Tinubu, I’d ask them to remove all those posters. I will order Wike. The sycophancy is too much, that is why I say by the time everybody is conquered they will have no one left to govern.

You are now by all definitions a statesman. What advice can you give the President?

My advice to Tinubu is this; he should remember that against all odds, against Afenifere, against Ohanaeze, against ACF, against Buhari, against everybody, God made him president of Nigeria. Therefore, let him go back to God and tell him, “I am very grateful that you made me President, if you don’t put me back, I thank you for making me President of Nigeria.

But then he is going all over the place to say I can take over your functions with my Wayo, with my wuru wuru and come back, you don’t play God.

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