With the zoning of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential ticket no longer in doubt, the battle has been transferred to the 37- member zoning committee headed by Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom. Among the recommendations made by the group was that the committee should be driven by ”certain pragmatism and practical realities.”
Due to differences in zoning, two opposed factions, one of which appears to be lobbying for some presidential candidates, are divided along regional lines. One group is calling for the ticket to be zoned to the southern half of the country. On the other hand, other people believe that the contest should be open to any and all participants.
The pro- North faction, which operates under the auspices of the Justice and Equity Group (JEG), submitted a memorandum to the zoning committee yesterday. They maintained that keeping the contest open to all potential candidates would be in the best interests of the PDP.
As stated in a paper written by Ahmed Muhktar, Yemi Arokodare, and Chima Ndugbu, the Joint Economic Group (JEG) contends that the opposition party cannot afford to trap itself into a regional or sectional corner.
It further cautioned that allocating the ticket to any particular region of the country could lead to the party making a costly mistake. It is believed by the group that what the PDP requires at this moment is an open and inclusive race in which no member or area of the country is precluded from participating.
According to the Arewa Youths Consultative Forum (AYCF), Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State must quit and relinquish his position as chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) zoning committee as soon as possible, according to the group.
In a statement issued yesterday in Abuja by Yerima Shettima, the National President of the Arewa Youths Consultative Forum (AYCF), Governor Ortom was accused of compromise and bias, stressing that his acceptance of the sum of N200 million from Governor Nyesome Wike of Rivers State, who is contesting the presidential election in 2023, clearly has put the North at a disadvantage in the PDP as far as zoning is concerned. Governor Ortom has denied the allegations.
Shettima called on the PDP chairman, Dr Iyorchia Ayu, to come clean about claims that he was harboring a hidden purpose in support of Ortom’ s actions and to remove him of the zoning assignment allocated to him, or else place him near the toga of a collaborator, as a result of the allegations.
They warned that any political party that takes the North for granted will hold themselves responsible because they will pay the political consequences of their conduct come 2023.
 presidential ticket no longer in doubt, the battle has been transferred to the 37- member zoning committee headed by Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom. Among the recommendations made by the group was that the committee should be driven by ”certain pragmatism and practical realities.){kind=link}