Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State has blamed the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)’s loss in the 2023 presidential election on its failure to zone the party’s ticket to southern Nigeria.
Speaking during an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Thursday, Governor Mohammed who also chairs the PDP Governors’ Forum admitted the party made a critical error by throwing the ticket open instead of respecting Nigeria’s informal power rotation between the North and South.
“Life is always a learning process,” he said.
“When we did it in 2023, it was not a pleasant experience, and that was why we lost. I discovered, to my surprise, that the presidency is a consensus phenomenon. You cannot impose yourself on anybody or any group.”
In 2023, the PDP fielded former Vice President Atiku Abubakar as its presidential candidate in a closely watched contest ultimately won by Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The decision to keep the PDP ticket open was met with backlash, most notably from the influential G-5 group led by former Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike.
Wike, who lost to Atiku in the party’s primary, argued that the PDP had breached the nation’s unwritten zoning convention.
He contended that since outgoing President Muhammadu Buhari was from the North, the next president should naturally come from the South.
The G-5, also known as the Integrity Group, distanced themselves from the PDP presidential campaign and covertly supported Tinubu.
Following the election, Wike was appointed Minister of the Federal Capital Territory by President Tinubu, further cementing the perception of the PDP’s internal fractures.
Now, as the 2027 general elections draw closer, the PDP has taken a different path by formally zoning its presidential ticket to the South, a move Mohammed says is not only timely but necessary.
“When my party decided that we would zone this [ticket] to the South, I had no qualms because I knew it was for the common good and not about personal interest,” the Bauchi governor said, even though he had earlier expressed interest in running.
Governor Mohammed emphasized that the party’s decision would help restore internal unity and bolster its electoral chances.
He also pointed to what he described as the APC government’s underperformance, claiming the PDP must now present a viable southern candidate capable of challenging Tinubu.
“We need somebody strong, or stronger, from the South to give him a fight for his life because the government of the day is not working very well,” Mohammed asserted.
The PDP’s repositioning, he said, is rooted in lessons learned from the past and a renewed commitment to equity and national cohesion.
