The definitive ‘No’ said to Ayo Fayose by the PDP could mean the chances of a ‘Yes’ to Atiku has just got better.

Fayose, the current Governor of Ekiti state, has submitted a formal request indicating his interest to pick the PDP’s presidential nomination for 2019 General elections. He has, however, been asked to refer to the party’s decision to zone the Presidency to the North and the national chairmanship to the South West.

The Governor’s campaign now looks dead on arrival and it is only a matter of time before the ‘real’ contenders begin to come forward. Elections are only about 20 months away and if the PDP has asked the North to produce their flag bearer for the 2019 polls, the arrangement of alliances now look set to begin.

Already on the lips of many is the possibility of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar taking one more shot at the Presidency. His complaints about not being carried along in the APC Government of President Buhari have raised the suggestion that he may be looking for a different platform for his ambitions.

It won’t be plain sailing for Atiku in the PDP; he broke with the party in 2007 after former President Obasanjo literally made it impossible for him to obtain the party’s nomination for the elections ten years ago. He has since been associated with the ACN and was one of the heavyweight forces behind the formation of the APC. How he would convince the PDP to take him in now that they have zoned the position to the North?

by Alexander O. Onukwue