Politricks: See Photos of Fayose and Mimiko 'Romancing' Ali Modu Sheriff Before Party Crisis

Posted by George on Tue 01st Nov, 2016 - tori.ng

There is a popular saying that there are no permanent friends in politics but permanent interests. This description may perfectly suit the leadership disaster rocking the main opposition party in Nigeria - PDP.

Nyesom Wike (Left) Ali Modu Sheriff (middle) and Ayodele Fayose (Right)

Factional leader of the People's Democratic Party, Ali Modu Sheriff who is a former governor of Borno State, was once a close ally of the controversial Governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose who has now accused him of being a pawn in the hands of the ruling All Progressives Congress to thwart the opposition party from within.

According to Sheriff, some top PDP chieftains suspected to be Governors Ayodele Fayose, Nyesom Wike (Rivers), Seriake Dickson (Bayelsa) visited him in the comfort of his house to appeal to him to run for the national chairmanship position of the PDP which he obliged.

Fayose and other allies strongly supported the emergence of Sheriff who they saw as a viable figure to tackle President Muhammadu Buhari of the APC. Reports have it that Fayose's support for Sheriff may not be unconnected to a covert plan by Sheriff to run for Presidency in 2019 with the Ekiti man as his running-mate.

The embattled Governor Olusegun Mimiko of Ondo State also joined the Sheriff romance bandwagon before conflicting party interests divided the merry party. This further polarized the PDP into two power factions namely the Ali Modu Sheriff group and the Ahmed Makarfi Care-taker committee.

Gov. Olusegun Mimiko (left) and Ali Modu Sheriff

Fast-foward to October 14, 2016, the Sheriff faction of the PDP trounced Mimiko's gubernatorial candidate, Eyitayo Jegede of the Makarfi group with a High Court order withdrawing him from the heated contest.

He has since been replaced by Nigerian billionaire, Jimoh Ibrahim from the Sheriff camp. The drama goes on and on ahead of the November 23 gubernatorial election as Mimiko struggles to restore his anointed candidate, Jegede which has been described as a lost cause.

The crisis has given more oxygen to the political ambition of APC governorship candidate in Ondo, Rotimi Akeredolu who has soared high in popularity in an uncanny way while Fayose continues to blame the APC for his party woes.