Despite the position of the constitutions of the two major parties on "anti-party" activities, there are several cases of open rebellion by politicians.
Internal wrangling within political parties, often due to poor internal democracy, is a major feature of party-based politics in Nigeria. This has caused politicians to defect from their parties with "thousands of supporters".
Oftentimes, in buildups to elections in Nigeria, defections are a common phenomenon as politicians move around seeking refuge. Sometimes, the migration could be an "opportunistic move" by politicians to join parties that are likely to win.
In the build-up to the 2023 general elections, a new phenomenon is of politicians openly working against their parties. Some of the politicians have been able to carry out this anti-party activity despite the constitution of their parties forbidding such.
For instance, Article 21. A.II of the constitution of the APC forbids "Antiparty activities or any conduct, which is likely to embarrass or have adverse effect on the party or bring the party into hatred, contempt, ridicule or disrepute."
Also, Section 58.1.f provides that "subject to the provision of this constitution, the party shall have power to discipline any member who engages in anti-party activities."
Despite the position of the constitutions of the two major parties on "anti-party" activities, there are several cases of open rebellion by politicians, who for different reasons are backing candidates of political parties other than theirs.
Here are some of the most popular cases of open rebellion by politicians against their parties in the current transition process.
Wike and the G5 governors
Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State has been at the forefront of a rebellion against the PDP since losing the presidential primary election to Atiku Abubakar. In the past seven months, the governor has built a coalition with some governors, including Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, Samuel Ortom of Benue State, Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia and Ifeanyi Ugwanyi of Enugu State.
Aside from the governors, there are other politicians like Bode George, ex-Ondo governor Olusegun Mimiko, Dan Orbin, ex-Plateau governor Jonah Jang, and ex-Ekiti governor Ayodele Fayose in the coalition that now calls itself the Integrity Group.However, due to local political situations in their respective states, it has been difficult for them to unanimously endorse a single presidential candidate. For instance, in the case of Rivers State, it has been a case of moves on the chess board.
The PDP National Working Committee struck first by discontinuing the case filed by the local PDP under the control of the governor against the primary elections of APC and Social Democratic Party (SDP) in Rivers State. The move by the PDP was designed to strengthen the opposition in the state, particularly the APC, in a bid to forestall an alliance between Messrs Tinubu and Wike.
Governor Wike responded by accusing the PDP national body of anti-party collusion with APC Rivers. As a course of action, he revoked the permit granted to the PDP presidential campaign council for holding a rally. The political atmosphere in Rivers became so tense that Atiku was forced to call off the rally in Port Harcourt.
Also, the development has created tension in the APC in the state, as the former Minister of Transportation and chieftain of the APC in Rivers, Rotimi Amaechi, boycotted the presidential rally of the party in the state. Unperturbed about the situation in APC Rivers, Mr Tinubu visited Governor Wike during the campaign stop in Rivers.
In Benue State, Mr Ortom has openly endorsed the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi. The reason for backing the former Anambra State governor may be connected with the political reality in Benue State. Unlike in Rivers State, the governorship candidate of the APC, Hyacinth Alia, a clergyman, poses a significant threat to Mr Ortom's succession plan.
On the other hand, the Labour Party presents a safe option for the incumbent governor who is about to complete his tenure and has set his sights on a Senate seat. It is safe to say that the Labour Party cares more about the presidential election than the governorship poll.
Secondly, the Labour Party senatorial candidate that is challenging Mr Ortom in Benue South West district appears to be in a difficult situation. Mark Gbillah, a member of the House of Representatives, is the candidate of the Labour Party and also the candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party, according to the INEC official list.
Section 115(1) (d) of the Electoral Act provides that "any person who signs a nomination paper or result form as a candidate in more than one constituency at the same election commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a term of imprisonment."
Mr Gbillah had told PREMIUM TIMES that he has filed a lawsuit against the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on the appearance of his name as a candidate in the two parties. He claimed that he resigned from the NNPP in line with section 31 of the Electoral Act.
However, his name continues to appear on the INEC list as the candidate of both parties. With this, Mr Gbillah is facing uncertainty pending the determination of the case on his candidacy.
Mr Gbillah's situation could mean that the Labour Party poses no challenge to Mr Ortom's ambition. Not surprisingly, Mr Tinubu did not visit the governor when he visited Benue State for his rally because having Mr Alia is, arguably, more important.
Oyo State presents a much more delicate situation for Mr Makinde, the state governor. Within the PDP in Oyo State, the pro-Atiku camp led by Jumoke Akinjide, the former minister of state for FCT, appears to be formidable in the state. At the PDP presidential rally in Ibadan, the only person missing was the Oyo State governor as every other candidate appeared at the rally.
What makes Mr Makinde's situation seems precarious is that he is the only member of the G5 that is seeking re-election as governor, and he is running against formidable opponents like Teslim Folarin of the APC and Bayo Adelabu of the Accord Party. And considering the fact that only one governor has ever been elected to a second term in the history of the state, the alliance between Messrs Tinubu and Makinde seems complicated.
Also, members of the PDP with federal legislative seat tickets may be worried because currently, APC controls the majority of the federal legislative seats in the state, hence, the PDP candidates may be running against strong incumbent candidates.
In Enugu and Abia States, Messrs Ugwanyi and Ikpeazu seem to wear tight lips on who they are endorsing. In these two states, several polls have predicted that the Labour Party may win the presidential polls in their states. Although, in the case of the former, one of his predecessors, Chimaroke Nnamami of the PDP, has thrown his full weight behind Mr Tinubu.
One other thing the G5 governors have been doing is to get interim injunctions against the PDP NWC to prevent their expulsion or suspension. So far, Messrs Wike and Ortom have both gotten such orders.
Ibikunle Amosun and Tolu Odebiyi
It is fair to say that Ibikunle Amosun, a former governor of Ogun State, is a serial anti-party practitioner. While still an APC governor in 2019, he supported Adekunle Akinlade of the APM against his party's candidate and current governor, Dapo Abiodun. And it appears now that time has not changed the perception of the former governor of his successor.
In this election cycle, Mr Amosun is backing the candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Biyi Otegbeye.
In October 2022, while announcing his position on the race, Mr Amosun stated that "For the presidential poll, I can assure you, both right, left and centre, that we are supporting one person (Tinubu). I believe we are supporting one person.
"On the governorship front, my supporters and I don't belong to that side. I do not support the APC on that side. I do not support the APC on that side. Biyi Otegbeye is the person I am supporting and ADC is the party."
Mr Amosun has stated that his decision to back Mr Otegbeye is to allow power to shift to Ogun West senatorial district, which has never produced a governor for the state.
Tolu Odebiyi, the senator representing Ogun West on the platform of the APC, is equally backing the candidate of the ADC and has appeared at rallies for Mr Otegbeye.
Chimoroke Nnamani
Mr Nnamani's open campaign for Mr Tinubu earned him expulsion from the PDP, but the action of the party appears to have reinforced his "resolve to continue his campaign" for Mr Tinubu.
There are two major issues ahead of Mr Nnamani--political and legal implications. Mr Nnamani dismissed the expulsion by the PDP on the ground that only the National Executive Council has the power to remove him, in line with article 59 of the PDP constitution. However, not being a member of the party may make him vulnerable to any post-election lawsuit as the PDP may refuse to defend him.
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On the political front, Enugu State has never voted for any party other than the PDP. Mr Nnamani will have the daunting task of getting citizens to abandon the PDP and Peter Obi, and support the candidate of the APC. But what is more interesting is that Mr Nnamani may have the support of his state governor, Mr Ugwanyi, who is also a member of the G5.
The Labour Party candidate is equally popular in the state.
Babachir Lawal
Less than a year ago, Mr Lawal, a former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, was at the International Conference Centre in Abuja to pick up the presidential nomination form for Mr Tinubu, who at that time was in Saudi Arabia for the lesser hajj.
But the relationship between the two has deteriorated to an extent that Mr Lawal seems to have a single objective in this election - "Stop Bola Tinubu and his Muslim/Muslim ticket."
To achieve the objective, Mr Lawal, while being a member of the APC, endorsed the Labour party's presidential candidate. Speaking after the endorsement, Mr Lawal said that he had no interest in the Labour Party, only in the candidate.
"I am not interested in LP as a party. I am interested in Peter Obi as a potential presidential candidate. It doesn't matter which party Peter Obi is, I sense that Nigerians are due for change," he said.
The involvement of Mr Lawal in the campaign of Mr Obi appears to be polarising the party in Adamawa State. In January, the Labour Party governorship candidate, Umar Madawaki, and some National Assembly candidates of the party boycotted the presidential rally, as they accused Mr Lawal of hijacking the party.
Kassim Afegbua
The former commissioner of information in Edo State was one of the early backers of Bola Tinubu. Mr Afegbua, who was once in the PDP, opposed the candidate of the PDP because of the rotation of the presidency.
Mr Afegbua is of the view that since incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari is from the North, power should rotate to the south. Initially, he was included in the presidential campaign council of the APC, but his name was later removed.
