Mixed reactions have trailed the Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) decision to zone its 2027 presidential ticket to the South.

Naijaonpoint reports that the major opposition camp reached the decision at the end of a crucial National Executive Committee, NEC, meeting held on Monday in Abuja.

The NEC also announced that the chairmanship of the party remains zoned to the North, affirming Umar Damagum as National Chairman pending the party’s national convention later in the year.

A decision party leaders say is aimed at salvaging the once-dominant opposition party from its dwindling influence.

Tensions Ahead of NEC Meeting

The NEC meeting did not come lightly. In the build-up, the party had been sharply divided, with feuding camps battling for the “soul of the PDP.”

Naijaonpoint reports that the question of zoning the presidential ticket was particularly contentious, given the lingering bitterness from the 2023 general elections.

Then, the PDP threw its ticket open, paving the way for former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, from the North, to emerge as the party’s flagbearer.

That decision triggered a storm. The then Rivers State governor, now Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, alongside the G-5 governors and other members, revolted against the party’s candidate, accusing the leadership of disregarding the principle of balance. Their opposition contributed to the party’s poor showing at the polls.

Monday’s decision, therefore, was seen by many as an attempt to heal old wounds and reposition the PDP for 2027.

Briefing journalists after the NEC meeting on Monday, PDP National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, explained that the decision followed the presentation of a zoning report by Bayelsa State Governor, Douye Diri, who chaired the committee.

However, the resolution has sparked mixed reactions across the country, with many questioning whether the move is timely enough to save the opposition party.

The camp of Nyesom Wike wasted no time in dismissing the PDP’s move as a belated correction.

A Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and Social Media to the FCT Minister, Lere Olayinka, described the decision as “too late,” arguing that Wike and his G-5 allies had made the same case in 2022 but were ignored.

“Wike simply said, take the chairmanship to the South if you want to gain the presidency, but they said no, they must take the two, and the PDP lost!” Olayinka said.

“They have realized the mistake they made in 2022 and are correcting it in 2025. But is it not too late already, bearing in mind that the only way the zoning can be justified is for the South to conclude its eight years, while the presidency returns to the North in 2031?”

Olayinka further said the PDP had “gone back to eat its vomit,” stressing that the leadership had now embraced the very principle Wike fought for and was crucified over.

NEC Has Endorsed Tinubu – Olawepo-Hashim

Naijaonpoint reports that not all criticism came from Wike’s camp.

A former PDP presidential candidate, Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim, also rejected the resolution, insisting it amounted to a backdoor endorsement of President Bola Tinubu’s reelection.

Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today shortly after the NEC meeting, Olawepo-Hashim argued that the zoning move was “unprecedented” in the history of the PDP.

“What has happened today is unprecedented. PDP has never zoned its presidential ticket before. It means if you are a northerner, you find another party,” he said.

“The zoning of the presidency to the South is a default campaign for the return of President Asiwaju. Those who are mounting this campaign are the same people who say, ‘We are in PDP, but we work for President Asiwaju.’ Look at them, almost all of them, already committed to Tinubu’s reelection.”

‘Things Falling in Place’ – Onyia

However, not everyone in the PDP shares that gloomy outlook. A member of the PDP Board of Trustees, Ejiofor Onyia, described the NEC decision as the beginning of order being restored within the party.

“Everything is falling in place after the convention, then we have a new executive that will start moving the party in the direction we want it to go,” Onyia said on Arise TV.

He dismissed Wike’s criticisms, accusing the FCT minister of effectively working for the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC.

“As of today, the FCT minister is working for an opposition party. He does not hold any executive position in PDP and cannot dictate the party’s direction. We are in a democracy where the majority has its way and the minority has its say. That’s the way it works,” Onyia said.

Analyst Describes Move as ‘Cosmetic’

Meanwhile, political analyst and communication scholar at Peaceland University, Enugu, Dr. Nduka Odo, described the PDP’s zoning resolution as a “cosmetic treatment” that failed to address the root problems bedevilling the party.

He noted that while the return to the old principle of rotation was in line with PDP’s tradition since 1999, the decision was too little too late.

“If that principle had been observed in 2023, the PDP would probably have been in a stronger position today,” Daily Post quoted Odo as saying.

Odo further argued that the party had lost much ground since then, pointing to the formation of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, as the “final straw” that weakened the PDP.

“I see this zoning as a cosmetic treatment for the core cancer bedevilling the party. The real issue concerns who is in charge of the PDP and what the hidden missions of its current structure are,” he added.

He questioned whether the party could still win significant votes in 2027, noting that it only controls a handful of governors in the South East, South South, and South West.

Who Will PDP’s Flagbearer Be for 2027?

Naijaonpoint reports that speculation is already rife over who may carry the PDP’s flag in 2027.

Analysts point to governors like Peter Mbah (Enugu), Douye Diri (Bayelsa), Ademola Adeleke (Osun), and Seyi Makinde (Oyo).

While some believe Makinde may emerge as the favourite, others say the party may instead field a candidate from the South East or South South, not necessarily to win but to weaken the chances of the Labour Party’s Peter Obi.

With Wike’s growing ties to President Tinubu, critics argue that the zoning decision could end up as a mere strategy to keep PDP afloat while its governors focus on their reelections and personal survival.

As reactions continue to trail Monday’s NEC decision, one thing remains clear: the PDP is at a crossroads.

To some, zoning is a step toward healing the party; to others, it is an admission of past failure, a political correction that has come too late.

For many Nigerians watching from the sidelines, the question is not whether the PDP has zoned its presidential ticket, but whether the party still has the strength, unity, and vision to challenge the ruling APC in 2027.