Nothing in APC to attract Ekweremadu, says PDP

The national leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party has
debunked the rumour making the rounds that the Deputy President of
the Senate, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, is planning to leave the
party.

Rather, it said there was nothing in the ruling party, the All
Progressives Congress, that could attract Ekweremadu into its
fold.

Instead of losing members, the PDP said aggrieved members of the
APC would defect to the former ruling party soon.

There had been unconfirmed reports that Ekweremadu was planning
to defect from the PDP to the APC for allegedly losing the
Vice-Presidential ticket of the party to a former Governor of
Anambra State, Mr Peter Obi.

Ekweremadu was believed to have positioned himself for the slot,
but was said to have been disappointed when the PDP Presidential
candidate, Atiku Abubakar, announced Obi as his running mate for
the 2019 presidential election.

As part of the strategy to clinch the VP position, Ekweremadu
was also believed to have rallied round delegates from the
South-East to vote for Atiku at the party’s national convention
held in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, about two weeks ago.

To show his disaffection, Ekweremadu, whose name had already
been submitted by the PDP to the Independent National Electoral
Commission as a senatorial candidate from Enugu State, was said to
be considering leaving the PDP for the APC.

However, the National Publicity Secretary of the party, Mr Kola
Ologbondiyan, debunked the rumours, saying Ekweremadu “will never
leave the PDP.”

Ologbondiyan said, “Why would someone like the DSP (Deputy
Senate President ) consider joining the APC?

“This is a party that the highest court in the land just
described as being stupid. Who will leave a rebranded party like
the PDP and join such a party that has been described in such a
derogatory word?

“Forget the rumour. Dr Ekweremadu is with us and will never join
a party like APC that is enmeshed in eternal crisis.”

Asked if the party had met with Ekweremadu to determine if he
was actually planning to leave or not, Ologbondiyan said that the
“party has a way of holding meetings with its officials and
others”, adding that “such meetings are not held on the pages of
newspapers.”