Atiku: Fielding Northern presidential candidate in 2023 backfired – Abba Moro on reason PDP lost

The Senate Minority Leader, Abba Moro, on Thursday, identified the major reason why the Peoples Democratic Party lost the 2023 presidential election.

Moro disclosed that PDP lost the 2023 presidential election because it field a Northern candidate.

The Benue South Senator said PDP’s decision backfired and it affected the party.

In 2023, PDP field former Vice President Atiku Abubakar as its presidential candidate against the outcry of most party chieftains.

PDP chieftains had accused the party of failing to uphold its convention and rotation policy by allowing the North to produce its National Chairman and presidential candidate.

However, Moro warned that PDP may have the same result if it repeats its past mistakes.

Featuring on AIT programme, Focus Nigeria, Moro said: “In 2022 running into 2023, the PDP was in opposition, so the question at that point was, what do we do to get back to the winning ways.

“The constitution of the PDP provides for zoning but Nigeria’s constitution provides a level playing ground for everybody to aspire for whatever level he can in the country.

“So, in the political permutation of PDP at the time, leaving the choice of candidate open was an attempt to pick the best out of the best that could change the status quo of the ruling party at the time. It was an option that backfired and needs remediation.

“Looking back now to what I know, part of the reason we lost in the 2023 presidential election is the fact that our presidential candidate came from the North.

“People generally on moral ground said, look if the North has presided over this country for eight years, it’s only fair that the South should be allowed to produce a candidate for the election.

“We didn’t do that, it takes a few hours or minutes to cause damages but it takes more time and effort to repair.

“At the moment the PDP is trying to realize its mistakes and there is no doubt that if PDP continues to make the mistakes of the past that presumably led to our present predicament, the results will be the same.”

Atiku: Fielding Northern presidential candidate in 2023 backfired – Abba Moro on reason PDP lost