Northern Group Reacts To Obasanjo Quiting PDP

Following the long expected quit of former President Olusegun Obasanjo from the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), a northern group has reacted bitterly and condemned the ex-president.  

Olusegun Obasanjo

Nigerian Pilot reported that the Coordinator of the Northern Emancipation Network, NEM, Alhaji Abdulazeez Suleiman on Monday in a reaction to the aforementioned said Obasanjo’s shredding of his party membership card was an act of irresponsibility by a Nigerian of his status.


Suleiman explained that given Obasanjo’s status as a General, former head of state and former president, it is unexpected that he could descend to such level of behaviour at a time he assumes he knows it all and has on his fingertips the alleged solutions to the country’s challenges.

He debunked insinuations and speculations that Obasanjo is among the founding fathers of the PDP, revealing that he was only brought out from the prison to take the party’s reins of power in 1999.

The NEM coordinator also disagreed that the PDP’s expulsion of the former president from the party was coming in late because the PDP gave Obasanjo the respect he deserved, but he lamented that now that Obasanjo had torn his party membership card, the hammer should fall on his head.

Suleiman said that the current behaviour of the ex-president had justified the ‘motor park tout’ tag placed on him, noting that his expulsion from the PDP would do no damage to the PDP.

“Obsanjo has no electoral value both in Ogun State and Nigeria. He places his personal interest above national agenda and does not see any good in others,” he said.

The NEM coordinator further claimed that Obasanjo was discrediting everything about the President Goodluck Jonathan-led government, especially the forthcoming general elections in order to cause confusion in the polity so that his plan for an Interim National Government, ING, would be achieved.

“Obasanjo is championing the ING agenda; he is turning the international community against the government of the day. He wants to discredit the election so that in the confusion that will ensue Obasanjo will present himself for consideration for the ING leadership. Even though the nation’s constitution has no provision for ING, its emergence cannot be ruled out because when there is crisis in the country, all the options would be weighed and the ING could be a feasible one,” Suleiman said.

He alleged that retired military Generals are using the All Progressives Congress, APC, candidate, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, to stage a comeback to power.

Recall that Obasajo, announced his exit from the PDP on Monday and publicly tore his membership card saying he would no longer stay in politics after serving the party for almost 16 years.

The development had sparked a lot of criticism with first coming from the Chariman of the Board of Trustees, Chief Tony Anenih, who acknowledged that the former President had the right to dump the party, but would not be missed,while the PDP through its secretary of the Board of Trustees, Walid Jibrin, said Obasanjo acted irresponsibly.