Governor Peter Odili yesterday bowed out of the presidential race in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), 24 hours to the national convention of the party.
The withdrawal, it as learnt, was on the instruction of President Olusegun Obasanjo.
Yesterday, another governor, Ahmed Makarfi of Kaduna State, also pulled out of the race. The moves by all these contenders for the prized crown was believed to have been dictated by the awareness that the convention may just be a formality, as the party and the leadership appear to have conceded the past to Governor Umar Yar�Adua of Katsina State, the younger brother of General Shehu Yar�Adua, Obasanjo�s deputy in the military dispensation of 1976-1979.
As PDP holds its presidential primaries today, facts emerged on yesterday that the presidency had cancelled hotel reservations made for Odili�s delegates in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory where the primaries is taking place.
Odili had since the last three weeks fully booked Sheraton Hotels and Towers for all his delegates, but the presidency was said to have moved out yesterday to cancel the reservations to make way for the delegates of another favoured aspirant, Alhaji Umar Yar�Adua.
Governor Odili was said to have spent about N53 million to book reservations for his delegates at the Abuja Sheraton Hotel.
The Odili campaign team also alleged that in the last two days they had been under severe harassment and intimidation from the power that be, and the campaign team was still meeting as at last night to strategise on how to resolve the difficult situation.
Odili presidency was said to have lost out of favour from the presidency when he was alleged to have spent N.2 billion to buy vehicles in respect of the primaries.