PDP wants Atiku, Kwankwaso and Ladoja back at the party

The national leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party is beginning to strategize a special committee that will convince those who defected from the former ruling party to the current ruling party, All Progressives Congress and other political parties to return to the fold.

The committee, according to SUNDAY PUNCH’s investigation, is different from the Reconciliation Committee being planned by the party.

It will be recalled that the National Executive Committee of the party at its 74th meeting held at the party’s national secretariat in Abuja on Tuesday, had mandated its National Caretaker Committee to set up reconciliation and disciplinary committees.

It was was learnt that the planned committee may be called “Contact and Inter-Party Committee”, and it may be headed by a former minister or a former governor, whose identity is still being shrouded in secrecy.

Those being considered with the hope of asking them to return to their former political party are a former Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar; a former Governor of Kano State, Alhaji Rabiu Kwankwaso; and two former Governors of Oyo State, Senator Rashidi Ladoja and Adebayo Alao-Akala.

It was also gathered that  former Governor of Sokoto State, Alhaji Aliu Wamako;  former Governor of Adamawa State, Admiral Murtala Nyako(retd.) and some other members of national and state assemblies that had left the PDP, had been penciled down for approach.

A top source at the national headquarters of the party, also said that the President of the Senate, Dr. Bukola Saraki, was being given special consideration.

Spokesperson for the National Caretaker Committee of the party, Prince Dayo Adeyeye, confirmed the plan to set up the committee in an interview with our correspondent.

He also said that identities of those being considered as members of the two committees which the NEC mandated the caretaker committee to set up, was not yet known.

Adeyeye, a former Minister of State for Works, said, “We have yet to decide on the names of those to put in the two committees the NEC asked us to set up. May be we will settle that by next week.”

Meanwhile, the party has said that its presidential candidate will still come from the northern part of the country.

Source: ( Punch Newspaper )