Kenneth Okonkwo, a former spokesperson for the Labour Party’s presidential campaign, has accused the PDP of being responsible for the party’s current internal problems and charged that its leaders had become political pawns of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
On Friday, February 7, 2025, legendary actor and politician Okonkwo made the claim on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily program, claiming that the PDP’s leaders’ desire to further the APC’s agenda is the reason for the party’s waning influence.
The appointment of former Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike by President Bola Tinubu was cited by the former LP spokesperson as a crucial turning point that severely damaged the PDP’s reputation as an opposition party.
Remember how high-ranking PDP official Wike allegedly conspired against his party’s presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, in the 2023 elections, which helped Tinubu win?
Even though he was a member of the PDP, the APC-led government later awarded him the position of Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
According to Okonkwo, the PDP’s political vulnerability was further strengthened by Wike’s appointment as minister, since the party leadership was no longer able to successfully operate as a genuine opposition.
“Look at what’s happening in the PDP,” he remarked. For example, some persons came out as G5 and worked against the party’s interests in an overt, rather than clandestine, manner, and everyone could see it. After making accommodations for them, you made excuses for them.
“Normally, when you accept such things, it would begin graduating. Now that they have been given an appointment, they want to take over the party.They would then proceed to take over the party, and once they do, the genuine members would become servants to the servant, as their primary leader is now a minister in the APC and the others are servants to him. In other words, the PDP is now a servant of the APC.
Okonkwo criticized the former vice president for his recent assertion that the APC buys opposition groups in order to destabilize them before the 2027 election, claiming that his remarks target opposition parties rather than the ruling APC.
He maintained that it is acceptable for the APC to use any methods necessary to discredit its rivals, thus the party shouldn’t be held accountable for “bribing” the opposition parties.
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“Since success and excuses don’t go hand in hand, I will never place the blame on the opposition party or the ruling party. I heard His Excellency Atiku Abubakar claim that the opposition party received N50 million from the ruling party. The ruling party did not make me feel humiliated. The opposition parties made me feel embarrassed. In reality, you are accusing the opposing parties of being extremely corrupt. No giver will be available if there is no willing recipient. Destabilizing the opposition or opponent through whatever means is a legitimate political tool for any association, party, or nation, he stated.
As a result, he urged opposition parties to accept accountability for their shortcomings, stating that Atiku’s bribery accusation demonstrated the ineptitude and corruption of opposition parties.
The Nigerian people’s aspirations have not been met by the opposition. They ought to own up to their mistakes, accept responsibility for them, and then turn around and act morally. Since it is in the political interest of the ruling party to destabilize the opposition, decline their offer to do so. However, the opposition’s willingness to allow itself to be destabilized demonstrates their incapacity and corruption, Okonkwo stated.
