Former governor of Niger State, Babangida Aliyu, has stated that members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) who have left the party are part of those contributing to the internal crisis.
At a PDP Consultative Conference held on Wednesday in Abuja, Aliyu described the defectors as nomadic politicians, discouraging the party from inviting them back.
He recalled that during the party’s national convention in Port Harcourt, many candidates who emerged were nomadic politicians.
The former governor urged the party hierarchy to learn from history.
“Both the chairman and the chairman of the governors’ forum have been very diplomatic and saying ‘come back, come back’.
“No, you don’t invite nomadic politicians back to your party. These were people with a history of nomadism,” he said.
Aliyu attributed the party’s major problems, dating back to 2013 to 2014, to lack of discipline and the prioritisation of selfish interests over the collective good.
“We cannot keep on, knowing that the black sheep in the family keeps on destroying whatever we are building. And then you say, ‘come back’. In fact, the most shocking time period was 2019,” he stated.
The former governor stressed the need for rewarding party loyalists rather than those who frequently move from one party to another.
Aliyu reminded members that the PDP constitution clearly stipulated that defectors should “join the queue” upon return.
He urged the party to focus on fostering “real, principled politics,” even if it didn’t immediately translate into electoral victory.