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The National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Prince Prince Uche Secondus, has distanced himself from speculations that he plans to seek a second term in office.
He disclosed this at the meeting summoned by the BoT to find an amicable solution to the crisis rocking the party as a result of power tussle within the party ahead of the national convention and 2023 general election.
The PDP national chairman had challenged Rivers state governor, Nyesom Wike to name anyone he had told he intended to run for a second.
“He told the governor to name anyone he had informed that he was running for a second term. He also said that the party would determine who would be the next national chairman of the party and that the party was bigger than himself. He said the governor should play the role of a father,” a source who spoke to Punch said.
After Wike ended his speech, Senator Abdul Ningi was said to have been the first to speak. He told the governor that the rift in the party would be settled and that there was no need to quarrel, proposing that a committee should be set up to look into the issues raised by aggrieved members.
In his contribution, a former Governor of Kaduna State, Senator Ahmed Makarfi, was said to have told Wike that it was the first time the governor would be speaking to the board on any issue like those mentioned.
A former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Chief Tom Ikimi, was said to have expanded the list of those suggested by both Makarfi and Ningi to be in the committee to look into the crisis rocking the party and advise the party on the way forward.
“He suggested that the committee must consist of seven members of the BoT, all the governors elected on the party’s platform, three former governors, three former ministers and the entire membership of the NWC,” the source said.
Following the mass resignation of NWC members four days ago, the Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Diran Odeyemi, withdrew his resignation.
Investigations by one of our correspondents showed that the deputy national legal adviser and the deputy national organising secretary were also planning to withdraw their letters of resignation.
“Barring any last-minute changes, the two men will be back at their desks on Monday,” a secretariat staff member of the party said.
Meanwhile, further investigations showed that the initial plan was for four key members of the NWC to resign, namely the Deputy National Chairman (North), National Secretary, Youth Leader and the National Auditor.
“If they had resigned with those who initially resigned, then the aggrieved governor would have taken the matter to the governors’ forum meeting on Monday and canvassed the total dissolution of the entire NWC on account of a crisis of confidence,” another source added.
The source said the party’s leadership, including the caucuses, was of the opinion that members of the NWC, especially the national chairman, should be allowed to serve their tenure and seek re-election if they so desired.
He said, “Presidents and governors produced by our party seek re-election and they are even given priority. Also, members of the National Assembly even seek re-election more than twice. Why would we be forcing our national officers out?”
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In the history of the party, none of its national chairmen has served four years, as constitutionally allowed by the constitution.
The late Dr Alex Ekwueme, who was the first elected vice president of Nigeria, was the first chairman of the party in 1998.
He left to take part in the party’s presidential primaries, which he lost to former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
He was succeeded by a former governor of Plateau State, Chief Solomon Lar, who was in office between 1998 and 1999.
Senator Barnabas Gemade took over from Lar and was in office from 1999 to 2001, after which Chief Audu Ogbeh assumed office as the party’s national chairman.
Like those before him, Ogbeh also failed to complete his tenure as he was forced out of office due to the Anambra State party crisis, which former president Olusegun Obasanjo believed was not well-handled by the party chairman.
The first Director-General of the National Youth Service Corps, Senator Ahmadu Ali, succeeded Ogbeh and was in office between 2005 and 2008. A former National Secretary of the party, Prince Vincent Ogbulafor, was elected as the national chairman in 2008, but was forced to resign in 2010.
A former governor of Enugu State, Dr Okwesileze Nwodo, was barely in office for one year in 2010 as the party national chairman when he was sacked and succeeded by Dr Haliru Mohammed, who also did not last one year before he was succeed by Alhaji Kawu Baraje, a former national secretary of the party from Kwara State.
Baraje was in office between 2011 and 2014, but Dr Bamanga Tukur, who took over from him, presided over the affairs of the party between 2012 and 2014 before he was also forced to resign due to a crisis that engulfed the party as a result of a gale of defections by some governors to the All Progressives Congress, which was in its formative years then.
A former governor of Bauchi State, Adamu Mu’azu, was in the saddle of the party for just a year between 2014 and 2015, during which the party lost the presidential election for the first time since 1999.
There were speculations that he worked for the APC; although he denied the allegation, he is now a member of the party he denied working for then.
Also, Ali Modu Sheriff, a former governor of Borno State, was installed as the national chairman in 2015. His reign was characterised by litigation and accusations that he was planted by the APC to derail the former ruling party.
Sheriff, who was sacked by the Supreme Court in 2016, is also now a member of the APC. Makarfi, who midwifed the convention that ushered in Secondus as the national chairman in 2017, succeeded Sheriff.
Source: Punch
This post was written by Obiajulu Joel Nwolu.
The views expressed here belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect our views and opinions.