The governors who have tagged themselves G-5 governors include Governors Nyesom Wike of Rivers State, Samuel Ortom of Benue State, Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State and Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia State.
The five aggrieved governors on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have raised another dust in the party with their foreign trip to London, United Kingdom to finalise their decision on who to back for the presidency in the 2023 general elections.
The governors who have tagged themselves G-5 governors include Governors Nyesom Wike of Rivers State, Samuel Ortom of Benue State, Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State and Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia State.
Recall that before the aggrieved governors left for London, they had foreclosed working for the presidential candidate of their party, Atiku Abubakar.
The Nation reports that a source said the governors who had also synchronised themselves as the Integrity Group are now tinkering with the idea of either throwing their weight behind the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, or the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi.
It was gathered that at a private meeting of three of the aggrieved governors with former President Olusegun Obasanjo, he asked the G-5 to support Obi because no Igbo candidate had been elected president.
It was learnt that the governors who wanted a winning candidate, had been weighing options on the chances between Tinubu and Obi.
On that point, their dilemma was not to back a wrong candidate which will make the PDP and its flagbearer, Atiku to mock them.
A source noted that the London meeting was important because campaign ahead of the 2023 polls would come to its peak in January.
The PDP crisis started from the time the aggrieved governors insisted that the PDP National Chairman, Senator Iyorchia Ayu must resign after Atiku won the party's presidential ticket.
A source said the G-5 governors may kick off campaign on January 5, and they needed to be firm in their decision on a presidential candidate to support.
The source also said that the five governors would run a campaign for presidential and governorship elections together, saying that they ought to streamline their position to be able to inform the electorate properly on where they are headed.
“The London meeting is a wrap up session on their preferred presidential candidate who will also be part of the campaign in their respective states.
“Before they left, the PDP presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, was already out of their equation. Both Atiku’s running mate, Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, and Governor Emmanuel Udom did not succeed in prevailing on the G-5 to support the PDP candidate.
“They claimed that Okowa and Udom are parts of the problem in PDP because they refused to abide by the decision of the Southern governors on power shift to the South.
“They have drawn the battle lines with Atiku. They have foreclosed any reconciliation. They will now meet at the poll to settle political scores.
“The G-5 governors have to choose between Tinubu and Obi. They have to consider all options, including the consideration of who has the strength or figures to defeat Atiku in the presidential poll.
“It is no longer about sentiments, but facing the reality on whose figures can add up to win the poll for power shift to the South, which is their ultimate objective,” the source said.
Also, another top source was quoted as saying that “The greatest fear of the G-5 governors is supporting a weak candidate who may lose the presidential election. Then, all their objective, plot and bragging will come to naught.
“Yet, they want to prove a point to PDP that they are a force to reckon with. If they fail to make an impact in 2023 poll, it will spell doom for their political career.
“As politicians, the G-5 governors have been closely monitoring the campaigns and political trends in the country. They will use available statistics at their disposal to determine whether or not to back Tinubu or Obi.”