Following speculations in some quarters that some PDP governors and party leaders had reached a deal for a particular candidate ahead of the presidential election, the party's national chairman, has spoken out.

The Prince Uche Secondus-led National Working Committee (NWC) of the PDP is under intense pressure to throw the contest for the party’s 2019 presidential ticket open to all aspirants.

 This followed speculations in some quarters that some governors and party leaders had reached a deal for the emergence of a particular candidate ‎ahead of the presidential election.

 The party had since last year zoned its presidential ticket to the North, and at the moment, about five prominent personalities have directly or indirectly shown interest.

 Delivering a keynote address at the opening of the two-day retreat for the NWC and state chairmen of the PDP in Abuja, Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, said ‎the new NWC should denounce all forms of impunity and politics of godfatherism.

 “Of utmost importance in the build up to the 2019 elections year is our choice of a presidential candidate. The fate and political fortunes of the party depend on the party’s presidential candidate.

 “The party must, therefore, identify a candidate with the credentials, reach, charisma, competence and popularity to outmatch any candidate presented by the ruling APC and any other party for that matter,” Ekweremadu said.

 Similarly, Governor Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa State who spoke at the event said the Secondus-led NWC should field a presidential candidate who had high chances of winning ‎the election.

 He explained that, “‎Politics is conspiracy upon conspiracy in the overall interest of the nation,” adding that the party must also ‎ensure that only credible candidates were fielded for all elective offices.

 In his remarks, Secondus said, “‎The point where we are at the moment is at the crossroads: about to take the critical decision of which direction to go, right or left.

 “Our choice should be swift, clear and unambiguous: we are going right and it leads us straight to Aso Rock.”