Politics
Imperative Of PDP Govs’ Meeting In PH
Ahead of 2023, the political space in Nigeria has begun to gather steam as political gladiators realign and restrategise for the general election billed for the next 13 months or so.
Although the electoral umpire, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), is yet to lift the ban on political campaigns in the country, some political gladiators have started consultations with their stakeholders, others have begun negotiations (horse trading) and strategising while others will be guests to prayer houses, pastors, shrines and native doctors seeking intervention in their ambition to attain political power.
They will be ready to throw everything at their disposal into the ring. Meetings, press conferences, dinner parties, amongst other social events are being staged for their supporters, loyalists, well-wishers and the media to divulge their political ambition.
The purpose is to garner the required political support that would launch them into their preferred political offices in 2023.
Whereas the All Progressives Congress (APC) seems to be having political brouhaha, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) from whom the former seized power in 2015, looks very set and determined to regain control of the centre.
Accordingly, the party has consolidated, repackaged and rebranded for the task ahead.
PDP had one of the most successful conventions in history with none of its members complaining over the outcome. On the contrary, the APC, though yet to hold its convention, feelers from the party hierarchy speak of great division and disagreements among themselves.
The state congresses of the party produced well over 40 state chairmen in a country of 36 states, and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Presently, there are over three persons laying claims to the position of national chairman of the party with litigations against the outcome of some of the congresses, even as the legitimacy of the Mai Mala Buni-led committee is still being challenged at various law courts.
The governors too, are heavily divided among themselves on the issue of the convention.
Some are accusing Buni of attempt to derail the convention following his rumoured interest to be vice president.
How all these would play out ahead of the February National Convention of the party remains to be seen.
With the PDP looking set to retake power in 2023, governors elected on the platform of the party are due to converge in Port Harcourt today, for crucial consultative meeting.
The 13 governors, who would be led by the Sokoto State Chief Executive and Chairman, PDP Governors’ Forum, Alhaji Aminu Tambuwal, include Abia State Governor, Dr Okezie Ikpeazu; Enugu State Governor, Hon Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi; Akwa Ibom State Governor, Mr Udom Emmanuel; and Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Duoye Diri.
Others are Delta State Governor, Dr Ifeanyi Okowa; Edo State Governor, Mr Godwin Obaseki; Bauchi State Governor, Senator Bala Mohammed; Benue State Governor, Dr Samuel Ortom; Oyo State Governor, Engr Seyi Makinde; Taraba State Governor, Mr Darius Ishaku, Adamawa State Governor, Hon. Ahmadu Fintiri; and the chief host, Rivers State Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike.
The 13 governors would examine a number of critical issues; top among which is how to reoccupy Aso Rock, and further win more states in 2023.
The Port Harcourt meeting is also crucial, imperative and significant at this point in our nation’s political life, because aside from examining critical national issues, the PDP governors coming to Port Harcourt would also set the agenda or criteria for the kind of presidential candidate the party would like to produce for the 2023 election as well as come up with a workable formula that would lead to the victory of the party.
In the mean time, as the PDP governors meet in Port Harcourt, Chairman of the party in Rivers State, Amb. Desmond Akawor, has on behalf of the state Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike, welcomed them to the state.
Akawor said the 13 governors should look forward to enjoying Rivers hospitality while wishing them a blissful stay and fruitful deliberations.
By: Paul Deeyah
Deeyah, former Director, News and Current Affairs, Rivers State Broadcasting Corporation, writes from Port Harcourt.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says it has not registered any new political parties.
The commission gave the clarification in a statement on its X (formerly Twitter) handle last Wednesday.
It described the purported report circulated by some online social media platforms on the registration of two new political parties by INEC as fake.
“The attention of INEC has been drawn to a fake report making the rounds about the registration of two new political parties, namely “Independent Democrats (ID)” and “Peoples Democratic Movement (PDM)”.
“For the avoidance of doubt, the commission has not yet registered any new party. The current number of registered political parties in Nigeria is 19 and nothing has been added,” it stated.
The commission recalled that both ID and PDM were registered as political parties in August 2013.
INEC further recalled that the two were deregistered in February 2020 in accordance with Section 225A of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
The commission, therefore, urged the public to disregard the said report.
President Bola Tinubu has asked Governor Hyacinth Alia to work more for peace and development of Benue State, saying he was elected to govern, not to bury people.
The President said this while addressing stakeholders at the Government House, Markudi, last Wednesday.
He also called on the governor to set up a peace committee to address some of the issues in the state.
The meeting included the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), George Akume, traditional rulers, and former governors of the state.
The governors of Kwara, Imo, Kogi, Plateau, Ondo, and Nasarawa states also attended the meeting.
“Let us meet again in Abuja. Let’s fashion out a framework for lasting peace. I am ready to invest in that peace. I assure you, we will find peace. We will convert this tragedy into prosperity,” he said.
President Tinubu urged Governor Alia to allocate land for ranching and directed the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security to follow up.
“I wanted to come here to commission projects, to reassure you of hope and prosperity, not to see gloomy faces. But peace is vital to development.
“The value of human life is greater than that of a cow. We were elected to govern, not to bury people”, he stressed.
He charged Governor Alia on working with the Federal Government to restore peace.
“Governor Alia, you were elected under the progressive banner to ensure peace, stability, and progress. You are not elected to bury people or comfort widows and orphans. We will work with you to achieve that peace. You must also work with us”, he said.
In his remarks, Governor Alia appealed to the Federal Government to establish a Special Intervention Fund for communities affected by repeated violent attacks across the state.
“Your Excellency, while we continue to mourn our losses and rebuild from the ashes of pain, we humbly urge the Federal Government to consider establishing a special intervention fund for communities affected by these incessant attacks in Benue State,” he said.
Governor Alia said the fund would support the rehabilitation of displaced persons, reconstruction of destroyed homes and infrastructure, and the restoration of livelihoods, especially for farmers.
He reiterated his support for establishing state police as a lasting solution to insecurity.
The governor pledged his administration’s full commitment to building a safe, stable, prosperous Benue State.
Also speaking at the meeting, the Chairman of the Benue State Traditional Rulers Council, Tor Tiv, Orchivirigh, Prof. James Ayatse, praised President Tinubu for being the first sitting President to personally visit victims in the hospital in the wake of such a tragedy.
He thanked the President for appointing notable Benue indigenes into key positions, including the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and the Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, Professor Joseph Utsev, while expressing hope that more appointments would follow.
Former Head of State, Gen. Yakubu Gowon (ret’d), says the Aburi accord collapsed because Chukwuemeka Ojukwu wanted regional governors to control military zones.
Gen. Gowon was Nigeria’s military ruler from 1966 until 1975 when he was deposed in a bloodless coup while Ojukwu was military governor of the then Eastern Region in that span.
In a live television interview recently, Gen. Gowon narrated what transpired after the agreement was reached in Aburi, a town in Ghana.
The meeting that led to the accord took place from January 4 to 5, 1967, with delegates from both sides of the divide making inputs.
The goal was to resolve the political impasse threatening the country’s unity.
The point of the agreement was that each region should be responsible for its own affairs.
During the meeting, delegates arrived at certain resolutions on control and structure of the military. However, the exact agreement reached was the subject of controversy.
The failure of the Aburi accord culminated in Nigeria’s civil war, which lasted from July 6, 1967, to January 15, 1970.
Speaking on what transpired after the agreement, Gen. Gowon said the resolutions should have been discussed further and finalised.
The ex-military leader said he took ill after arriving in Nigeria from Aburi and that Ojukwu went on to make unauthorised statements about the accord.
Gen. Gowon said he did not know where Ojukwu got his version of the agreement from.
“We just went there (Aburi), as far as we were concerned, to meet as officers and then agree to get back home and resolve the problem at home. That was my understanding. But that was not his (Ojukwu) understanding,” he said.
Gen. Gowon said Ojukwu declined the invitation, citing safety concerns.
“I don’t know what accord he (Ojukwu) was reading because he came to the meeting with prepared papers of things he wanted. And, of course, we discussed them one by one, greed on some and disagreed on some.
“For example, to give one of the major issues, we said that the military would be zoned, but the control… He wanted those zones to be commanded by the governor.
“When you have a military zone in the north, it would be commanded by the governor of the military in the north, the military zone in the east would be commanded by him. Of course, we did not agree with that one”, Gen. Gowon added.
Ojukwu died on November 26, 2011 at the age of 78.