Waiting on PDP’s NEC

This week, the opposition Peoples Democratic Party is scheduled to hold a crucial National Executive Committee meeting, which among other decisions, would pick a date for its national convention, writes Chuks Okocha

With the resolution of the leadership crisis that faced the main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP) the party is now forced to face the consequences of what happened in the intractable power struggle that nearly saw the implosion of the party.

The PDP is forced by the circumstances that it found itself to organise a national convention to elect new members of the National Executive Committee (NEC) and calso announce which part of the country its presidential candidate will come from.

The Chairman of the PDP Governors’ Forum and Governor of Sokoto State, Aminu Tambuwal, who read the communique of the expanded stakeholders meeting where these decisions were reached, said that they must hold extensive consultations with all major stakeholders in the party including the governors, members of the Board of Trustees, former presiding officers and current principal officers and leaders from the National Assembly, former governors, former ministers, and indeed other leaders of the party with a view to bringing all tendencies within the party together in view of the urgent task facing the party as the only viable vehicle to checkmate the abysmally poor governance of the All Progressives Congress-led (APC) Federal Government.
The meeting, he said deliberated extensively on the issues thrown up and resolved that the constitution, traditions and practices of the party should be strictly adhered to in finding solutions to any problem.

He stated that the meeting appealed to all stakeholders to sheathe their swords in the greater interest of the PDP and the need to rescue Nigeria from the avoidable national malaise and drift occasioned by the APC administration.

As part of the solution to the immediate crisis, the Sokoto state governor said that all processes leading to an early national convention in October should be immediately activated by relevant party organs, especially the National Executive Committee.

In this regard, Tambuwal said that the party should redouble efforts to provide a credible alternative leadership for Nigeria as it still remains the only hope for the Nigerian people for good governance.

Accordingly, he said, “The meeting requested the NEC to immediately constitute a zoning committee for party offices and another committee for national elective offices”

This would a huge challenge to the PDP, because two things are involved. The NEC meeting expected this week will discuss two major things. First the constitution of the convention committee and review of the Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State’s Committee report that threw the presidential ticket of the party open.

In setting up the convention committee, the party must be specific on the zoning arrangements and agreements that would favour it’s quest to win the presidential election in 2023, or else, the PDP would be dealing itself a fatal blow. Political pundits are worried, whether on the account of the resolved crisis, the PDP will reveal it’s zoning plans ahead of the APC.

This is because, once the national convention details are released, it would be very clear which zone gets what.

Again, the expanded stakeholders meeting hinted that the NEC meeting will review the report that threw open the presidential ticket of the party to all the six geopolitical zones of the country.

The 2019 Elections Review Committee set up by the PDP, to assess its performance in the last general election, urged the leadership of the party to allow interested party members vie for the 2023 Presidency, irrespective of their geo-political zones.

The chairman of the committee was the governor of Bauchi state, Senator Bala Mohammed. The committee anchored its position on the fact that across the land, Nigeria boasts of good hands capable of bailing the country “out of her current quagmire.”

He said: “In line with certain unwritten conventions of the nation’s history, many people think that, for fairness and equity, the North-east and South-east geo-political zones that have had the shortest stints at the Presidency, should be given special consideration, in choosing the presidential flagbearer of the party, for the 2023 elections.

“While we admit that this is a strong argument, we should not lose sight of the fact that Nigeria is endowed with many capable and very experienced leaders in every part of the country. Moreover, the exigencies of the moment demand that nothing should be compromised in choosing the leader, with the attributes to disentangle the country from the present quagmire.

“Therefore, we think that every Nigerian, from every part of the country, should be given the opportunity to choose the best candidate, through a credible primary election; as a way of institutionalising a merit-based leadership recruitment process, for the country.”

The report received attacks from Nigerians from the South, because it was against the tide that the presidential ticket of the party should be zoned to the south. To, therefore openly discus the zoning arrangement would be hurtful to the party. It would be playing the joker card before the game will commence.

But, even if the PDP still retains the office of the National Chairman to the south, which is likely to be so. Which of the three zones of the south will it be zoned to? Will Secondus and members of the NWC be stopped from contesting?

A party source privy to the consultations during the expanded BoT meeting, who spoke on condition of anonymity so as not to jeopardise peace moves, said, “It was very tricky because those for and against the national chairman held on to their positions .”

The source said, “The governors were divided. For the mere facts that the meeting lasted over seven hours, showed that there were unanimous decisions on this. There were those who wanted Secondus and members of the National Working Committee to commit to forfeiting their right to seek re-election in the forthcoming national convention as part of the peace moves.

“This was defeated when those who felt individual NWC members should be allowed to take such personal decisions prevailed. Those in this group argued that Section 47 (1) of the PDP Constitution 2017 (as Amended) gives NWC members the right to occupy offices for a maximum of two terms of four years each.
“Because of the tension generated by the loss of several of our members and leaders to the All Progressives Congress and calls on the chairman to resign, party elders felt each of the parties must make concessions in the interest of the party.

“One, it was agreed that the chairman should not be disgraced out of office while at the same time, it was noted that the party could ill-afford to risk losing more members by allowing him to remain.”, the source explained.

Insiders at the expanded stakeholders meeting separation explained that it was then agreed that the date of the national convention be moved closer. That way, the chairman will not feel he was hounded out of office while those who want him out immediately will also not feel their observations were taken for granted or ignored. This was what informed the choice of October for our convention.

It is important to add that there is no clear position yet whether the Secondus led NWC would be stopped from recontesting their offices at the convention. The party clarified that no decision was taken to bar any member of the NWC from exercising his or her rights under the constitution of the PDP to contest in its forthcoming national convention

Kola Ologbondiyan National Publicity Secretary of the PDP said that this explanation has become imperative given misrepresentations of the outcome of the intervention by elders and leaders of the party on the challenges that faced the PDP recently.
“While the PDP has put these challenges behind it, the NWC states that it will continue to adapt itself to the Constitution, traditions and practices of the party in carrying out its responsibilities,” the party said.

The NWC therefore charged members of the party to remain focused in their commitment as they jointly work to further strengthen the party for the tasks ahead.

Going forward, with the convention slated for October, it will make matters worse, because it will expose it’s presidential plans. So far, none of the stakeholders from the south is making their intentions known over contesting the presidential election as at the time of this report. Even, if they do, it is still a well guarded plan.

But all over town, it is only the presidential posters of aspirants like the former vice president, Atiku Abubakar, Governor of Sokoto state, Aminu Tambuwal, former senate president, Bukola Saraki. Governor of Bauchi state, Bala Mohammed that are visibly seen on the streets. None of the perceived aspirants from the south have indicated interest like their colleagues in the north.

However, in the case that Prince Uche Secondus should decline to contest, it is being speculated that the former National Secretary of the party. Olagunsoye Oyinlola is an interested person. He is being sponsored by the Oyo State governor, Seyi Makinde.

Stakeholders opined that the October national convention of the PDP, if allowed to hold will be hurtful to the party, as it is better to allow the APC to make the first move. Both the ruling party and the main opposition party have similar critical decisions to make-where the National Chairmen and presidential candidates will come from.

Everyone is waiting for the direction tthat the PDP NEC will go at its meeting this week. Will it stick to the suggestion for an early national convention in October or allow the APC announce its own national convention, first, which is very unlikely as the APC is entangled in crises of greater proportion.

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