Ripples Nigeria - Though once reputed to be the largest political party in Africa, the fortunes of the now opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is fast dwindling, as it has split into different factions.
While the party has scheduled its national convention for Port Harcourt this Saturday, another faction has also slated the same day for a parallel convention to be held in Abuja.
This faction is comprised of former ministers and former governors.
So come Saturday, except the issues are resolved, and the members reunited, the PDP may end up with two set of national executive officers, and what happens after that is anybody’s guess.
Ripples Nigeria however, gathered that the crisis within the party is not an internally generated dispute, but fuelled by external forces, from the ruling party bent on retaining power at the centre.
Probes revealed that some forces in the APC are of the view that one sure way to retain power is to decimate the ranks of the PDP, leaving it weak, and unable to offer any meaningful or threatening opposition.
Sources within the PDP unhappy with the development have revealed that a strategic think tank within the APC has held an influential leader of the PDP by the jugular, forcing him to carry out the planned breakup of the opposition party from within.
Feelers reveal that the PDP chieftain who was dragged to court for his alleged involvement in the now infamous Dasukigate by the EFCC, is keen to maintain his freedom, having spent a couple of nights in detention, an issue which is being used as leverage to rein him in to carry out the plan to destabilize the PDP.
Our source, a highly placed PDP chieftain revealed that already, the PDP stalwart, a media mogul has been assured that he would get a breather from the case with the EFCC, as conditions for his cooperation.
The PDP chief has so far reportedly been keeping his end of the bargain by organizing rebellious meetings of PDP and desperately sending out text messages to PDP members to attend the factional national convention in Abuja.
The last meeting of the faction opposed to the chairmanship of Ali Modu Sherriff was held in his company where it was decided to hold a parallel convention.
As the APC plot plays out, it is yet to be seen how the PDP intends to counter it to remain afloat, as a viable opposition party, and beyond.
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