How Atiku and Wike’s “fight” may hand PDP’s presidential ticket to Peter Obi

I have read comments and analyses where some pundits postulated that the biggest obstacle to Peter Obi clinching presidential ticket of the PDP is Governor Nyesom Wike.

They are of the opinion that Wike’s entrance in the race has polarized the south, thereby giving Atiku undue advantage to emerge the party’s candidate at the end of the day, as the strongest aspirant among the PDP presidential hopefuls from the north.

But, it is the other way around. In fact, if not Wike, it would have been a “walk over” for Atiku, who is a battle-tested presidential aspirant. Atiku represents centripetal forces while Wike stands for centrifugal forces, both will end up canceling themselves, ultimately in favor of Peter Obi, as the unifying candidate, at the end of the day.

Atiku will never support a Wike as the PDP presidential candidate, while Wike might ensure that PDP has no candidate, instead of Atiku to flag the party’s flag in next year’s general election. The two opposing camps will rather support a “neutral” Peter Obi than work for each other. Obi will become the “consensus” candidate of “compromise” for the two rival camps.

When some people criticized Peter Obi for attending Atiku’s declaration, I laughed. If Wike had held his own declaration like Atiku did, Peter Obi would have been there, also. He is playing his game very well. In the midst of a lot of strengths and might, sometimes, perceived weakness is the real power. Ask Musa Yara’dua, Goodluck Jonathan, James Obori and Peter Odili, in the political events of 2006/2007.

What Bola Tinubu and Yemi Osinbajo battle of survival in southwest is doing for Chibuike Amaechi, is exactly what Atiku and Wike supremacy struggle is doing for Peter Obi. When Amaechi declared, Tinubu boys descended heavily on him in the media, trying to discredit him but immediately Osinbajo announced his intention to run, Tinubu camp, seeing a bigger threat at the backyard, shifted its arsenals to Osinbajo.

By the time the “Russian-Ukraine” war going on in Yoruba land would have been over, the two camps must have been fatigued to face an Amaechi that has been left to build momentum. The same thing is happening between Atiku, Wike and Obi. Peter Obi’s popularity is growing at the speed of the light, daily. Atiku is fixated on Wike while Wike doesn’t want to hear that name again.

If you have been keenly observing, Peter Obi has never verbally or subtly attacked any other aspirant in the PDP since he started his journey towards Aso Rock Villa. He has maintained inspiring decorum cum civility of an Impending presidential candidate of the PDP, who knows he will need everyone, when the primary is over, to face a vicious the APC at the polling booth, that is not ready to relinquish power soon.

So, in summary, Governor Wike’s aspiration is aiding Obi’s ambition, and not the other way round.