Senator Sandy Onor, an ally of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has picked the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) expression of interest and nomination forms to contest the 2027 presidential election.
The move brings into sharp focus a delicate balancing act within the PDP, where Wike has openly backed President Bola Tinubu’s re-election, even as the party positions to field its own candidate and challenge for power. Onor, a former senator and prominent figure within Wike’s political bloc, spoke to journalists in Abuja on Saturday after obtaining the forms, saying his decision followed sustained pressure from party stakeholders across the country.
Onor said, “Gentlemen of the press, I have made the point earlier. Upon pressure from the leadership and full support of this party, I have come and picked the expression of interest form and the nomination form in order to contest for the ticket for the presidency of this country under the platform of this great party. “I’m sure you have witnessed the fact that I have accomplished a lot, and the rest of the process, you know, forms will be filled, and we will head into the nomination process proper.”
Responding to concerns over Wike’s support for Tinubu, Onor drew a clear line between individual choice and party direction.
He said, “Barrister Nyesom Wike is indisputably the leader of the party, but he is not the party.
“If Nyesom Wike does not support President Tinubu, Nigerians will condemn him for lacking in integrity and probity. So he has a right to choose to support President Tinubu, and he has made that right open and obvious.”“And I think that anyone with integrity should act that way.
But the fact that he, as an individual, and even as leader of the party, has chosen to support the President does not mean that that is the direction this party will go.“This party has chosen to have a presidential candidate who will fight for election, as any other person would fight for it,” he added.
Projecting confidence, Onor said he would lead with responsibility if given the mandate.
He said, “And if, by the grace of God, I am granted leave, and I am democratically chosen to take charge and lead this party, I will do so courageously. I will do so with capacity and with a huge sense of responsibility.
“Let Nigerians choose what they want and who they want. And I believe at the end of the day they will choose us. They are yearning for PDP-type governance. And that, by the grace of God, will come again.”
