The crisis that is facing the Peoples Democratic Party may not end anytime soon as the situation took a turn for the worse following Rivers state governor, Nyesom Wike decision to sue Atiku Abubakar over the 2023 presidential ticket of the major opposition party.
Wike filed the lawsuit alongside another PDP member Michael Ekamon, according to filings entered before the Abuja Division of the Federal High Court.
The applicants also joined the PDP, Governor Aminu Tambuwal and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the matter.
The parties were served on July 1, and a PDP official responded to the originating summons on August 5 in Abuja.
The lawsuit could further throw a spanner in the works of the main opposition party in the build up to the 2023 general elections — for a platform already vigorously shaken by the increasing population of Peter Obi and his Labour Party base.
It also comes as a reconciliation panel begins sitting to resolve a dispute between Messrs Abubakar and Wike over the outcome of the presidential primary and the selection of a running mate by Abubakar. The matters came to a head last week when Mr Wike publicly accused Abubakar of lying about the extent of the internal wrangling while allegedly instigating attacks through Sule Lamido and others, calling them “attack dogs.”
Mr Wike has been seething over the convention outcome for several weeks, and his anger intensified after Mr Abubakar passed him over for Ifeanyi Okowa as the vice-presidential candidate. Mr Abubakar said competence and loyalty weighed heavily in his considerations for a running mate.