Weekly Summary: How PDP Crises Splits Jonathan’s Loyalists

 

 

The crises in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the resulting spill over into the National Assembly have led to a sharp division among loyalists of President Goodluck Jonathan over how to contain the political rebellion.

This was even Dr. Mua’zu Babangida Aliyu, the Governor of Niger State, has confirmed that more governors were ready to join the G-7 Governors when the alarm was finally blown.

Gov. Aliyu spoke when members of the Sir Ahmadu Bello Foundation paid him a courtesy visit in his residence in Minna on September 20, Friday, adding that their identities would be known at the appropriate time.

The Abuja Division of the Federal High Court has meanwhile fixed September 30, to continue hearing on a suit seeking to stop the Alhaji Abubakar Kawu Baraje led faction of the party from operating in the country.

The PDP however, on September 20, Friday, libelled the new PDP as well as the G-7 governors, saying it was not afraid of them in any case.

Chief Olisa Metuh, the National Publicity Secretary of the party noted that the party was only treading the path of caution because of its respect for the agreement reached between President Goodluck Jonathan and the governors of Adamawa, Niger, Sokoto, Rivers, Kano, Kwara and Jigawa states, calling for a truce, pointing out that it had endured enough of what it termed the macabre dance from its estranged members.

The new Peoples Democratic Party (nPDP) in its turn also raised an alarm over alleged moves by the presidency to engage in massive bribing of members of the National Assembly (NASS). and asked President Goodluck Jonathan to call his men to order in order not to plunge the country into “avoidable chaos.”

According to the nPDP, the presidency should also stop the moves to bribe NASS members so as not to portray his administration as promoting corruption to the high heavens.

However, on the division in the presidency, it was learnt that while some elements led by two powerful female ministers and some presidential aides have erected a parallel structure outside the National Assembly leadership for engaging the legislators, some others also in the presidency are pulling back from that direction warning that it could boomerang to hurt the presidency.

The decision to identify alternative legislators outside the recognised leadership, it was learnt, is already breeding tension between the presidency and the leadership of the two houses. The situation is said to be especially grave in the House of Representatives where the deputy speaker, Chief Emeka Ihedioha is said to have been left sour with the determination of the presidential aides to sidestep the House leadership in resolving the problems caused by the emergence of the nPDP in the House.