PDP Crisis Deepens

Thursday, 22 April 2010 15:15

The crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) seems to be deepening. Two prominent leaders of the party and members of PDP Reform Forum, Senator Ken Nnamani and Hon. Aminu Bello Masari, summoned to appear before the party’s National Working Committee (NWC) today for alleged anti-party activities, have said they would not honour the invitation.
They said they had not been properly invited, explaining that they cannot be summoned through the newspapers.

Meanwhile, the NWC rose from its meeting yesterday in Abuja with a directive to all its state branches to admit former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar and his supporters back to the party. But in Adamawa State, controversy continued to dog Atiku’s re-entry as the state PDP said it has banned him from returning to the party for now.
PDP had summoned members of the Reform Group to appear before NWC at noon today for moving to oust the party’s National Chairman Prince Vincent Ogbulafor.

Apart from Masari and Nnamani, among those summoned to appear are former Senate President Adolphus Wabara, ex-Rivers State Governor Peter Odili and his former Imo State counterpart Achike Udenwa as well as former presidential aspirant, Owelle Rochas Okorocha.
The party was apparently toeing the line of governors elected on its platform, which on Monday condemned those moving against Ogbulafor.
And taking issues with the PDP Reform Group last night, Ogbulafor said he would not be distracted by the antics of those plotting to remove him from office.

The PDP chairman spoke when some state chairmen of the party came to pledge their support for him.
Speaking in separate interviews with THISDAY, former Senate President Nnamani and former House of Represen-tatives Speaker Masari said it was wrong for the party to invite them through newspaper publication, blaming it on the level of impunity within PDP.
Nnamani said: "At my level, it is unfair for me to be invited to a meeting through a newspaper advertisement or even a press statement. The National Chairman, Prince Vincent Ogbulafor, knows my home address, office address and he has all my telephone numbers. So what is the need inviting me for a meeting through a newspaper press statement?
"This is the level of impunity, which we are accusing the leadership of the party. In any case, on that day of the said meeting I have an engagement before the newspaper publication claiming to invite me for holding an opinion or associating with other Nigerians of like minds."

He said if properly invited by the party, however, he will honour the invitation.
"If I am properly invited by my party, the PDP, I will attend, but not until I am properly invited," he said.
Also, Masari, who is the leader of the PDP Reform Forum, said no invitation had been extended by the party to him to attend any meeting.
"Nobody has invited me. I have not received any invitation. If I am invited to a meeting by my party, I will certainly attend such a meeting. There is no harm in attending any meeting. But I cannot be invited to attend a meeting by mere newspaper publication. This is part of the problems in the party that we are complaining of," he said.

Okorocha said he was not aware that the party summoned him to attend a meeting.
He said he was yet to receive any invitation for any meeting.
Another member of the group summoned to attend, Chief Sunny Iroche, said it amounted to lack of respect for the party to invite them through newspaper publication. According to Iroche, "Decency and party constitution demand that the party invite members through a written letter or for lack of time, through a telephone call. I will not be drawn to attend any meeting through newspaper publication.

In the meantime, the PDP Reform Forum has scheduled a meeting for Abuja today at a prominent hotel for all members to attend.
The invitation for the meeting was signed by Masari. The meeting is scheduled for 11 am, whereas members of the group were summoned to appear before NWC at noon.
Another invitation to the meeting of the PDP Reform Forum was signed by Chairman of Africa Independent Television (AIT), Chief Raymond Dokpesi.
Ogbulafor has, however, said he will not be distracted or intimidated to resign as chairman.

"We don’t think that any amount of temptation, any amount of distraction will make us shift ground. It is only temporary and all these things will be over. But we are calling on the Almighty God to touch some people to know that even though it is said that politics is dirty that at the same time there is God so that we play politics with the fear of God not defamation of character or anything of such. If we do that it would be better for this great nation," he said.
Ogbulafor said his current travail was the work of devil. 
"So this is a first-hand experience and nobody will say that we have gone through it before. But the devil came to tempt us and we shall defeat him.

"We are all here elected for one reason or the other; those who are here, our governors, our National Assembly members, and the Presidency therefore it is our duty to make sure the promises made are fulfilled,” he said.
Ogbulafor assured the states chairmen that pledged support for him that he would not be distracted.
"We want to assure you that no amount of distraction can stop us this party is a party that has vowed to lead this nation and to support the Acting President and our governors and the National Assembly to deliver democratic dividends to the people who have elected us," he added.
Earlier, some state PDP chairmen led by Chief Bola Olu Ojo (Ekiti), Emmanuel Agbo (Benue) and David Umahi (Ebonyi) said they have the consensus of other state chairmen to pledge support for the NWC led by Ogbulafor.

The communiqué issued later by the chairmen read: "That we as chairmen of our great party condemn this act (of the PDP Reform Group) as it violates our constitution as stipulated in article 2. 21, sub section 1h, 1i and 1j
"That we state chairmen hereby direct all our members nationwide not to attend this meeting (of the Reform Group), as such attendance will be treated as anti-party activity.
"That we state chairmen frown at frequent calls by disgruntled individuals and certain groups for the dissolution of our party executives committees at the various levels at the slightest disagreement on party administration.
“We wish to state that change of leadership of our party at any level has a constitutional procedure, which must be followed and respected."

National Vice-Chairman of the party (North East), Senator Paul Wampana, who confirmed the directive, said it was to all state chapters including Adamawa, Atiku’s home state.
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo and Senator Jibril Aminu are said to have reached out to Nyako to prevail on him to block Atiku’s return to the party.
Wanpana said yesterday that all Nigerians of 18 years and above have an unrestricted right to join the party so long as they are willing to abide by its constitution, rules and regulations.

He said Article 8 of PDP amended constitution did not give the party or its branches the right to deny membership to anyone.
Atiku had last week announced that he had re-registered for PDP in his ward in Jada, Adamawa State.
A press release issued by the state Chairman of the party, Alhaji Umaru Kugama, said the action followed a unanimous decision taken by all the party leaders in the state, which included Governor Murtala Nyako, party executives, Senators, members of Federal and state legislature.
Kugama, however, claimed the ban allegedly placed on Atiku in the state was finalized after a brief discussion between the PDP national leadership and Adamawa chapter of the party when PDP leaders from the state visited the party’s National Secretariat in Abuja on Monday, April 19, 2010.

In a swift reaction, Atiku Campaign Organization said contrary to the position of the state chapter of the party, the state officials have been directed to go and register the former vice-president at his ward.
In another development, PDP will on Tuesday, April 27 hold its National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting in Abuja
The meeting is coming after it has been put off thrice between March and April 9 this year.
The NEC meeting is expected to discuss the current problems rocking the party especially the leadership of the party.
Also expected to be discussed are the draft guidelines for the party’s primary election at all levels.
Expected at the meeting are all members of the NWC, Board of Trustees of the party, governors elected on PDP platform, principal officers of the National Assembly and state chairmen of the party among others.