Powerful forces within the Peoples Democratic Party have mounted fresh pressure on its embattled National Chairman, Adamu Mu’azu, and other members of the National Working Committee, to resign before May 29.
SUNDAY PUNCH learnt at the weekend that senior party members comprising governors and associates of President Goodluck Jonathan had launched a plan to ratchet up the pressure on Mu’azu in the days before the May 29 handover. However, Mu’azu has repeatedly said he would not resign.
The governors and Jonathan’s closest aides have been in a long-drawn battle with the NWC with both sides trading blames over who was responsible for the party’s defeat at the presidential poll and poor outing at the governorship election.
Allegations of betrayal and diversion of campaign funds have been peddled by both sides since the ruling party lost its bid to govern Nigeria for another four years.
SUNDAY PUNCH gathered that a few weeks ago, the President had directed members of the party to stop trading words in the media because it could escalate the crisis the party is facing. But the President’s charge has been largely ignored.
A top member of the party told one of our correspondents on Saturday that the governors and Jonathan’s trusted aides would not stay in the same party with the NWC.
Pleading anonymity because of the President’s directive, he said, “The NWC has refused to resign despite the failure we faced during the elections. Many of them were moles of the All Progressives Congress before and during the election. We have been mounting pressure on them to resign, preferably before May 29. If they were spies for the opposition party when the PDP was in power, you can imagine how they will behave when the APC government is sworn in. They need to go as quickly as possible.
“Already, statesmen that members of the NWC respect have been sent to tell them to step down peacefully. We have also asked all our governors put more pressure on the NWC members in any way they can before May 29.”
Another high-ranking official of the party who also declined having his name in print told SUNDAY PUNCH that more PDP governors have also resolved to be more vocal about calling for the resignation of the NWC members.
The official, who is a close ally of the President, said, “This is a sad time for our party. Not just because we lost but because those responsible for our defeat have refused to leave. We have in the past two weeks been sending top party leaders to them to step down honourably but they have refused. I’m hoping reason will prevail and they will quit but if they don’t, then that means they want us to leave the party for them and we can if they push us to the wall. The governors have also resolved to put more pressure on them. Stepping down as soon as the President leaves office is just the right thing for the NWC to do.”
On Saturday, Governor Babangida Aliyu of Niger State on Saturday for the first time, called on the NWC members to resign.
The governer alleged that the NWC was planning to form a factional party becaus of the calls for their resignation.
Aliyu said this during the inauguration of township roads named after the ‘G7 Governors’ in Jigawa State on Saturday. The G7 governors are PDP governors who broke away from the party to form the New PDP, following the battle they had with the party leadership.
The governor said, “It is unfair for leaders of the party to be threatening to form a factional PDP because they were asked to resign.”
Joining Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State, who has been consistent in calling for the resignation of the NWC members, Aliyu said any leader who led his political party to defeat, like it happened to the PDP, should resign.
“It is unfortunate that people had to be called to resign. The leaders are supposed to voluntarily resign their positions for the loss at the just concluded general elections.”
A former Minister of Transport and member, Board of Trustees of the PDP, Chief Ebenezer Babatope, also told one of our correspondents on Saturday, that the NCW should quit, if doing so would restore peace to the party. He pointed out that the committee could not insist on remaining in office if asked to quit.
He said, “From the example of what has happened in Britain where leaders of the Labour Party have resigned as a result of the elections, this is a step that should naturally be taken by any party that has lost an election.
“The governors have the right to insist that the NWC should resign. The NWC should also, in the best interest of the party, do that which is best for the party so that we can move ahead.
“We want to make sure that we have a constructive and result oriented opposition to the APC; the PDP is in the best position to do that.”
In the same vein, a PDP chieftain and permanent member of the National Executive Committee, Chief Bode George told SUNDAY PUNCH that the NWC cannot be a judge in its own affairs.
George said, “You saw how the Labour and Liberal leaders resigned after losing elections in the United Kingdom. That is how it should be here. The NWC are involved in the day to day running of the party. They have no power of their own. They derive their powers from the NEC which comprises members of the BoT and all state governors.
“The NWC cannot be a judge in their own affairs. We are supposed to have a national meeting and reach a decision but the national chairman has travelled to Malaysia. Where is his commitment?”
The National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Mr. Olisah Metuh and the Secretary of the party, Prof. Wale Oladipo, did not respond to SUNDAY PUNCH’s enquires on the crisis.
Meanwhile, members of the Post-Election Review Committee set up by the PDP to assess its performance in the last elections and proffer the way forward met behind closed doors with Jonathan on Saturday.
The committee members were led to the meeting which was held inside the Presidential Villa, Abuja by their chairman and Deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu.
Ekweremadu told State House correspondents at the end of the parley that he and his members used the opportunity of the meeting to brief Jonathan of their work and seek his support.
He said, “As you are aware, the PDP set up a committee to have an overview of our performance during 2015 election and possibly proffer a road map for the PDP to return to its past glory.
“I would like to announce that Mr. President has given us his words that he will encourage and will support this process and that he is interested in the party returning to its past glory. He is going to do everything to ensure that we remain intact and we also agreed that all bickering have to stop so that we have a position that will enable us to rebuild our party.”
Ekweremadu said the blame game among party chiefs was expected as the first reaction to the kind of situation the party found itself after the elections.
“When you have this kind of situation, the first reaction will be blame game. But I think we have been able to absorb that shock and right now I can assure you that all that bickering has stopped.
“We are now ready to rebuild our party and be able to present a credible opposition for this country that will ensure us return to power in 2019.
“We are ready to hold the new government accountable and make sure that the promises they have made that we will be able to benchmark each of them appropriately so that it will not be that they have deceived Nigerians and got their votes.
“They are going to account for their statements and promises. We will hold them accountable to all the promises,” he added.
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