The New Peoples Democratic Party and the Bamanga Tukur-led PDP have renewed their war of words on the crisis rocking the ruling party.
While the New PDP, through its National Secretary, Chukwuemeka Eze, accused Tukur of blocking Sunday’s meeting between President Goodluck Jonathan and the seven aggrieved PDP governors, the PDP national chairman distanced himself from the allegation.
Before the New PDP made the allegation, Akwa Ibom State Governor, Godswill Akpabio, said the aggrieved members of the PDP, including the rebel governors, were free to leave the party.
Akpabio’s comment immediately drew flak from the factional PDP and some of the rebel governors, who accused him of playing to the gallery.
The New PDP had in a statement by Eze, called on the founding fathers of the PDP not to remain silent over the crisis in the PDP because Tukur was not happy with the ongoing reconciliatory meetings.
Jonathan had on his arrival from London, postponed another round of meeting he was billed to hold with the rebel governors in the Presidential Villa on Sunday.
Although he cited jet lag and ill health as reasons, The PUNCH gathered that he was under pressure from hawks in government to do so.
Before he announced the postponement, some of the rebel governors had arrived in Abuja, hoping that the meeting would hold.
The seven aggrieved governors are Rabiu Kwakwanso(Kano); Aliyu Wamakko(Sokoto); Rotimi Amaechi (Rivers); Sule Lamido(Jigawa); Babangida Aliyu (Niger); Abdulfatai Ahmed(Kwara); and Murtala Nyako(Adamawa).
• Tukur aggravating crisis
However, the New PDP said the suspension of four of its key members by the Tukur-led National Working Committee of the ruling party, was aimed at further aggravating the crisis in the ruling party.
The four are; Alhaji Abubakar Baraje, erstwhile National Chairman of the PDP; Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, Dr. Sam Sam Jaja and Ambassador Ibrahim Kazaure.
The four men had been asked to appear before the Disciplinary Committee of the PDP on Wednesday in Abuja.
The New PDP said, “As if that(suspension) is not enough, Tukur has also told whoever cares to listen that the proposed peace meeting of President Jonathan and the G-7 governors cannot see the light of the day as long as he is the national chairman of the PDP.
“Instructively and shockingly, the meeting which was scheduled to be held last(Sunday) night was put off at the last minute by Mr. President, who is the PDP National Leader, despite publicly announcing that he was fit again and set to resume work last night upon his return from his London trip.”
• Count me out of your woes-Chairman
But Tukur told the New PDP that he was not part of its members problems.
He advised the members not to make him the arrowhead of their political war.
Tukur, through his media aide, Mr. Oliver Okpala, told one of our correspondents in Abuja that the meeting between the rebel governors and Jonathan was purely an initiative of the Presidency.
He said, “It is wrong and completely unreasonable for any right thinking person to accuse Tukur of having a hand in the deadlock of the meeting because it is a presidential initiative and not an NWC affair, where Tukur presides.
“Therefore, there is no way he can get involved or frustrate such a presidential initiative. The so-called factional members should desist from insulting the integrity of Tukur, who is a nationalist.
“Tukur is not part of their political problem and therefore should not be seen as the arrowhead of their political fight. The earlier these people retreated from their rascality, the better for them.”
• Aggrieved PDP members free to leave
Earlier on Monday, Akpabio had said aggrieved members of the PDP, including the rebel governors, were free to leave the party.
He also warned them against capitalising on President Goodluck Jonathan’s humility and patience to continue to distract him.
Akpabio gave the warning while speaking with State House correspondents on the sideline of the launching of the third edition of the Youth Enterprise With Innovation in Nigeria programme in Abuja on Monday.
Akpabio, who is also the Chairman of the PDP Governors’ Forum, had reminded those against the PDP leadership, that no one could be a good leader without first being a good follower.
He added that the PDP, as a big and robust party, was not worried by some of its members’ threats to dump it and join the opposition All Progressives Congress or the Peoples Democratic Movement.
But he admitted that in politics, it was normal for people to leave one political party for another .
He said that political leaders must realise that sometimes, when they wanted to join another party, their followers might not go with them.
The governor claimed that there were many APC members who had already expressed their desire to join the PDP.
He added that many of those who fell under that category would soon come out publicly to identify with the PDP once the issue of the seven rebel governors was resolved.
Akpabio said, “I don’t see a problem in the issues of certain politicians wanting to change party. It is a normal thing in politics that people move from one political party to the other. But what is important is that we move on and the country moves on.
“And as the PDP is very big and robust, with branches in 774 local government areas, if you have five persons moving away from it, you have 10 to 50 moving into it.
“There are so many APC members who are approaching me on a daily basis that they want to be in the PDP but I keep telling them that it is not yet time. When we resolve this issue of the G-7 governors, you will see the big fishes that will come out of the APC.
“They are ready to come out and when they come out, it is going to be a boom for the PDP.The party is robust enough to readjust itself. It is the only political party in Nigeria that is not owned by any individual or a certain group.
“The PDP belongs to Nigerians. So, if one Nigerian leaves the PDP, another Nigerian comes in and the party goes on.Those of us who are leaders need to be careful because when we are moving to another political party, our followers may not go with us.
“ In the PDP, there is no shaking. I’m
very delighted that the President is very prepared to continue to discuss with any group, not just the G-7, any group of Nigerians within or outside the party.”
The governor also cautioned aggrieved members of the PDP against taking advantage of Jonathan’s humility and patience to distract him.
He said, “I just believe strongly that we have a very humble and patient President . I hope that we don’t take advantage of these attributes to waste his time and distract him.”
The governor added that it was imperative for people to know that they could only be good leader by first being good followers.
Akpabio said it was based on the conviction of the PDP leadership and that of the President that any rebellion could be resolved through dialogue that peace meetings were initiated.
He said, “I have seen newspapers clips where they mentioned ‘the rebellious governors,’ ‘the G-7’ and so on and so forth.
“In any rebellion, we can resolve it through dialogue and I think that that’s what the President is doing. That is also what the PDP leadership is doing; to see how it can discuss and bring the situation to a close.
“But I believe that you cannot be a good leader unless you are a good follower and I believe also strongly that leadership comes from God.
“So the question of rebelling against leadership has its repercussion because if I rebel against the leadership at the federal level, I should expect somebody also to rebel against my leadership at the state level, maybe from my own local government.
“And it is expected that as a state governor, I should respect the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. So, it is not important who occupies the position. I think what is important is to give respect to the institution of the Presidency. And that way, the international community can also respect Nigeria.”
He however said he was not opposed to continued dialogue with the aggrieved governors.
The governor said there should be an end to the dialogue so that the President could concentrate on the work he was voted into office to do.
He added, “There is no price you cannot pay for. There is the need for all to have peace . But the disagreement in the PDP is not something to worry about. It is just that it is overblown by the press.
• Akpabio playing to the gallery
However, some of the aggrieved governors dismissed Akpabio’s suggestion that they were free to leave the PDP.
One of the governors, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said Akpabio was simply playing to the gallery.
He said, “Where was he when we formed the PDP? He is in no position to tell us whether or not to leave the party. He has no such moral authority. The party does not belong to either him or Tukur; it belongs to all of us.”
Umar Kyari, the Director of Press and Public Relations to Lamido , said his boss would not leave a party he and others formed and nurtured to maturity.
Kyari added, “His Excellency is not leaving the PDP.
“He will remain to ensure that the right things are done and the party tows the path of internal democracy, justice and fairness.”
Also, the Chief of Staff, Government House, Port Harcourt, Tony Okocha, disagreed with Akpabio that rebel governors’ supporters would not follow them to another party if they decided to dump the PDP.
Describing Amaechi as the head of the political infantry in Rivers State, Okocha expressed worry that Akpabio and his cohorts had failed to advise Jonathan on the need to realise the electoral strength of Kano and Rivers states.
He said, “Amaechi is our leader and he has the mandate to make case on our behalf and if he decides to leave the party (PDP), we will join him. Akpabio is living in a world of illusion.”
• ‘Akpabio politically inferior to rebel govs’
The New PDP has also flayed Akpabio, saying he is the brain behind those plotting to discredit Jonathan if he ventures to contest the 2015 election.
It said, “Because of his inferiority complex, he (Akpabio) does not want those who are better than him in all ramifications to be in the PDP. All the G-7 governors are his superiors in politics.
“He has lost ground in Akwa Ibom and can’t guarantee his ward for the PDP much less of the state. He is the arrowhead of 16 is superior to 19 to exhibit his poor understanding of democracy.”
• Bauchi New PDP members back Tukur
Meanwhile, leaders of the New PDP in Bauchi State have pledged their loyalty to Tukur.
The leaders made this known in a letter dated November 19, 2013 and signed by their Chairman, Lawal Isa; Secretary, Mr. Ishak Umar; Youth Leader, Alhaji Abubakar Doma; and Woman Leader, Alhaja Baba Fika.
The letter, reads, “We are better informed. We wish to extend our unflinching loyalty and solidarity to you (Tukur). We know that within this short period, you have introduced programmes aimed at rejuvenating the party towards success in 2015.”
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