Politics

How PDP Govs’ Plot to Hijack Presidential Convention Committee was Foiled

Published

3 years ago

May 15, 2022

More revelations have emerged on how the plot by the governors elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to hijack the Presidential Convention Committee was foiled at the last National Executive Committee (NEC) of the party, THISDAY has learnt.

THISDAY gathered that the intrigues by other stakeholders in the party foiled the plot by the party’s governors to throw up one of their own as the chairman of the presidential convention committee.
The intrigues, it was learnt, eventually saw the emergence of the former Senate President, Senator David Mark as the chairman of the Presidential Convention Committee.

A source within PDP’s NEC, who confided in THISDAY, disclosed that the governors had adopted the same strategy they used in the October 30 National Convention where all the major committees of the convention were headed by governors, thus giving the signal that the party has been taken over by the governors.

However, the test of the capacity of the National Working Committee (NWC) to assert its independence came during the constitution of the presidential convention committee.

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In 2018, Delta State Governor, Dr Ifeanyi Okowa was the chairman of the presidential convention committee that took place in Port Harcourt.

Investigation however revealed that to ensure that the serving governors do not hijack the May 28 and 29, 2022 presidential convention, other stakeholders, including former governors restrategised to checkmate the gradual takeover of the party by governors.

THISDAY gathered that the governors had planned to install either the Oyo State governor, Mr Seyi Makinde, or his Enugu State counterpart, Mr Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi as the chairman of the convention committee.
But the stakeholders consisting of the national caucus, the Board of Trustees (BoT), and the forum of former governors as well as the former members of the National Assembly kicked against it.

“The position of the stakeholders is that the governors are some of the main presidential aspirants and that other governors are aligned to the aspirations of their colleagues. They argued that making one of the governors the head of the presidential convention would not guarantee a fair and transparent convention,” the source explained.
According to the source, the stakeholders met at various levels and agreed that the influence of the governors should be whittled down, at least to assure other presidential aspirants that are not governors of fair play at the presidential convention.

“Though we know that some of the governors are not happy about it, that is the only and better way to go,” the NEC member told THISDAY.
“It was for this reason that Senator David Mark was chosen. He was supported in the headship of the presidential convention committee by a former governor of Katsina State, Ibrahim Shema, and the Enugu State Governor, Ugwuanyi.

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The source said that the composition of the convention committee reflected the three major components of the party’s stakeholders.

“Mark represents the legislative arm as a former Senate president, while Shema represents the former governors and partly the executive committee as he was a former deputy national chairman of the PDP. The Enugu State Governor, Ugwuanyi represents the PDP governors’ forum,” the source added.

According to the source, “It should be observed by all that due to the presidential aspirations of some governors, other governors are no longer comfortable with one other. Take, for instance, the governor of Sokoto State, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal. He is the chairman of the PDP Governors’ Forum and his deputy is the Governor of Abia State, Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu.

“It is expected that in the absence of the chairman, the deputy should act, but the deputy to Tambuwal is the campaign director of the governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, and many governors are not comfortable with a meeting that Ikpeazu will head.

“It is for this reason that the governor of Benue State, Samuel Ortom has become the rallying point of the PDP governors’ meetings and other party stakeholders’ meetings.
“In the run-off to the last NEC meeting, all the party’s important meetings took place in the Benue State Government Lodge,” the source said. Highlighting the division among the PDP governors, the NEC member said, “we are not politically blind. We know where each of our governors belongs. We know that the Adamawa State governor, Ahmad Fintiri is a supporter of the former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, while Oyo and Abia State governors are with Wike. We know the body language of the Delta State and Taraba State governors. So, we are careful of our actions to avoid any suspicious blame,” he explained.

The PDP governors contesting for the presidential ticket of the party are Bala Mohammed of Bauchi, Tambuwal of Sokoto, Wike of Rivers, and Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom.
Investigations showed that the governors are currently torn between Tambuwal and Wike, with the expectation that Mohammed has a chance to contest for a second term.

The source is privy to the ongoing horse-trading ahead of the party’s primary and said four governors are said to be queuing behind Tambuwal while Wike and Emmanuel, who are from the same zone, also have high chances among the governors.

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Politics

Damagun writes INEC to conduct by-election for 27 vacant Rivers assembly seats

Published

1 day ago

November 26, 2024

Trends Admin

IIiya Umar Damagum

Damagun writes INEC to conduct by-election for 27 vacant Rivers assembly seats

Few days after governors on the platform of the Peoples Democracy Party (PDP) handed down an ultimatum for things to change in the party, the Acting National Chairman of the party, Umar Damagun has moved against the FCT Minister and his loyal lawmakers, the 27 members of the Rivers State House of Assembly.

Damagun in a letter addressed to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) dated 13th November 2024 and released on Sunday by the spokesperson of the Opposition Lawmakers Coalition, Ikenga Ugochinyere urged the electoral umpire to conduct a bye-election to fill up the 27 seats, they vacated to join the All Progressives Congress, APC.

Wike has been accused of being behind the crisis in the PDP over his disagreement with the Rivers State governor, Sim Fubara, his successor.

The crisis which started over control of resources divided the party in the state with 27 lawmakers in the state assembly siding Wike and defected to the APC following Wike’s acceptance to serve in the government of the APC.

He has also been accused of working in cahoots with Damagun to damage the PDP by not organising the National Executive Committee which would lead to the acting Chairman’s ouster.

After a series of agitation, the latest being from the PDP Governors’ Forum over the weekend, Damagun has demanded that INEC conduct elections as soon as possible, apparently moving against the FCT minister.

He argued in letter titled, ‘DEMAND FOR IMMEDIATE CONDUCT OF FRESH ELECTION IN 27 STATE CONSTITUENCIES OF RIVERS STATE WHICH HAVE BECOME VACANT PURSUANT TO SECTION 109(1)(g) OF THE CONSTITUTION’ that it’s “unlawful” for the 27 members to defect.

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The members defected to the APC on December 11, 2023.

Damagun said, going by provisions of the Constitution, the lawmakers are no longer members of the Assembly.

The PDP acting chairman therefore urged the Commission to perform its constitutional duties and begin the process of conducting fresh elections to fill the vacancies created in the 27 state constituencies by the unlawful act of the former Assembly members.

Parts of the letter read, “The Leadership of our great party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) wishes to draw the attention of the Commission to the gross violation of Section 109 (1)(g) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) by 27 members of the Rivers State House of Assembly following their unlawful defection from our Party, the PDP who sponsored their elections to the All Progressive Congress (APC) on Monday, December 11, 2023.

“The Commission may recall that our Party, the PDP nominated all our 32 State House of Assembly candidates in Rivers State for the 2023 General Election on the 7th of July 2022 via your electronic candidate election nomination portal (See attached acknowledgement).

“The Commission may also recall that following the nomination, the Commission conducted election into the Rivers State House of Assembly on the 18th of March, 2023 and our Party won 32 seats in the state Assembly. The elected State House of Assembly members were inaugurated and sworn-in on June, 2023.

“However, on Monday, 11 December, 2023 a period of just six (6) months after inauguration, 27 out of the 32 members publicly announced their defection from our Party to the All Progressive Congress (APC). This defection is a gross violation of Section 109(1)(g) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (As amended).

“The only two grounds of division and merger provided for in the Constitution that permit such defection are completely non-existent in our political Party. It therefore means that the defections of the 27 members are without lawful excuse and these members have vacated their seats in the Rivers State House of Assembly by the operations of Section 109(1)(g) of the 1999 Constitution.

“In view of the foregoing, we hereby demand that the Commission performs its constitutional duties and begin the process of conducting a Fresh Election to fill the vacancies created in the 27 State Constituencies by the unlawful act of the Assembly members. Find attached the list of the 27 State Assembly Members and their Constituencies.

“While thanking the Commission for its commitment to deepening democracy in our country, please accept the assurances of our highest regards.”

Damagun writes INEC to conduct by-election for 27 vacant Rivers assembly seats

Politics

Nigeria would have been better under Peter Obi, too much nepotism under Tinubu – Senator Abaribe

Published

1 day ago

November 26, 2024

Trends Admin

Nigeria would have been better under Peter Obi, too much nepotism under Tinubu – Senator Abaribe

Nigeria would have been better than what it is currently if Peter Obi, candidate of the Labour Party (LP), had won the 2023 elections, the senator representing Abia South, Enyinnaya Abaribe, has said.

Abaribe, who spoke on ‘Politics Today,’ a Channels Television programme, on Monday, said Obi would not have been as nepotistic as the administration of President Bola Tinubu.

“Number one, he would not be as nepotistic as this government; he won’t; it’s not in him. That is just who we are; we feel for the other people.”

The lawmaker called attention to Tinubu’s appointment of four ministers from Ogun alone, noting that many other states have just one.

“I say it, and I don’t think so. We are seeing it everyday. I just gave you one example. How can Ogun state have four ministers? Why does he favour Ogun state? Oyo state has only one minister,” Abaribe said.

”The nepotism of Buhari, which nobody followed, has now deepened under President Tinubu because Buhari did it, and nobody said much. I was the only person shouting.”

He said that rather than waiting for presidents to be fair to the people of the south-east, it is high time people of the zone went back to revamp it, make it more livable, better, and more cohesive.

“It’s obvious that if we continue to look at whoever becomes president, they will look at us and do us right. Apart from Obasanjo and maybe Jonathan, I do not think that we have seen that same type of fairness,” he said.

Politics

Lagos 2027: Seyi Tinubu campaign team releases his life documentary

Published

2 days ago

November 25, 2024

Trends Admin

Seyi Tinubu

Lagos 2027: Seyi Tinubu campaign team releases his life documentary

Seyi Tinubu, son of President Bola Tinubu, has been tipped for the seat of Lagos governor in the 2027 governorship election.

This was according to a video making the rounds on various social media platforms, which Peoples Gazette saw on Sunday.

The video highlights the president’s son’s biography, focusing on his education, career, and humanitarian activities as a Nigerian. It also documents his involvement in youth development in the country.

This biopic comes on the heels of some groups’ endorsements of Mr Tinubu’s son as a potential successor to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu in 2027.

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On Tuesday, the Coalition of Nigerian Youth Leaders issued an endorsement in Owerri, Imo, suggesting that the younger Tinubu would be welcomed to contest the governorship seat in Osun or Imo.

He was also endorsed by Friends of Seyi, a group emphasising his vision and intellectual wherewithal to govern the country’s commercial nerve.

APC chieftain Joe Igbokwe, however, described the gale of endorsements as a ploy to undermine the president in a Facebook post.

“Who are these faceless people pushing Seyi Tinubu for Lagos governor? This is a needless distraction,” said Mr Igbokwe. “To pull PBAT down is their target. Ruling Lagos is not the job of boys.”