PDP CRISIS : Jonathan’s Camp Depleted As 5 More Defecting Governors Emerge *** Dakingari, Shema, Suswam may join Baraje camp *** Yuguda, Dankwambo too As reconciliation efforts between the two factions of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) hits the rocks, the five Governors who are scheming to dump the Bamanga Tukur faction have been identified. Spokesman of the Abubakar Bawa Baraje group, Eze Chukwuemeka Eze had on Wednesday announced that five Governors of the other faction had indicated interest in joining them. While Eze did not mention the Governors involved, Ekekeee gathered that the Presidency got wind of this development a week ago, while the list of the ‘new rebels’ are presently on the table of the President. Our source added that only few of the Governors involved have raised a couple of issues why they are not happy with the Tukur faction. Others, we learnt, have failed to come forward with their grievances but have kept their distance from the Presidential Villa. The five Governors mentioned include Isa Yuguda (Bauchi), Ibrahim Shehu Shema (Katsina), Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo (Gombe), Gabriel Suswam (Benue) and Saidu Nasamu Dakingari (Kebbi). It is however an open secret in the Presidential villa and the entire political landscape in Abuja that not all the afore- mentioned Governors who professed loyalty to the President were truly ready to stay within his camp; some of them were only playing for time since they believed they needed more than enough reasons to openly call the bluff of the President. “So, it was only a matter of time before these traitors joined the enemy camp,” a top Presidential source told Ekekeee. “The President has always been aware of their evil games, that is why you see that some of the meetings he holds with his camp, some of these treacherous friends are excluded.” Dakingari, arguably the most taciturn of all of Nigeria’s Governors, had during the heat of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) whispered to a journalist covering the villa and who was his friend that: “You know me I am a Fulani man. Forget all this deceit we are doing, Amaechi is the authentic NGF leader.” This is despite the fact that Dakingari has never come out to declare where he belongs since the Governors’ Forum got split right through the middle. He has, according to sources, claimed to be loyal to the President while his mind is set elsewhere. “The truth is, there is hardly any northern Governor who is favourably disposed to the President coming back in 2015, the few ones left may just be deceiving him. Even Yuguda and Shema, the President does not really trust them. Some of them are just afraid of their allocations being seized, that is why they pretend to be in his camp,” our source revealed. Governor Gabriel Suswam too was surprisingly named among the Governors making a volte- face. He has since 2010 been listed among the closest Governors to the President, owing to his Presidential ambition. A top source told Ekekeee that his beef with the President began last year when Godswill Akpabio (Akwa Ibom) emerged the favourite of Mr President and Suswam was pushed to play second fiddle. When the President’s camp decided to force the creation of PDP Governors’ Forum as part of measures to break the dominance of Rotimi Amaechi, he also ignored Suswam and cajoled the PDP governors who attended the meeting at the State House, Abuja early this year to unanimously adopt Akpabio as their inaugural chairman. The President also gave Akpabio all Presidential assignments and made him the envy of his colleagues. Our source revealed that while Suswam remained loyal to Mr President as part of measures to make him endorse his 2019 Presidential ambition, the Benue Governor who practically stays in Abuja, whispered his grievances to the President in one of his constant visits to the State House while the President promised to consider him for serious national assignments to enhance his national profile. This, our source revealed, informed the appointment of Suswam as head of the Federal Government negotiating team in the ASUU crisis. Suswam abandoned the ship of Benue State and put all he had in the ASUU matter to impress the President but the lecturers’ refusal to call off the strike got him frustrated. He however told the President to trust him and give him more time. The President however lost his patience and pulled the rug off Suswam’s feet by ordering his deputy, Namadi Sambo to take over the negotiations with ASUU. Suswam saw this as another embarrassing blow and has in the last three weeks, ignored at least three invitations for Presidential assignments. Our source revealed that Shema (Katsina) has never been in support of Mr President’s 2015 ambition but saw himself in his camp due to his ambition to be the NGF leader. But since the President’s point man, Akpabio asked him to step down for Jonah Jang (Plateau) as the President’s anointed candidate, he felt betrayed and has since been withdrawing tactically from the President’s camp. The growing discontent of Dankwambo (Gombe) and Yuguda (Bauchi) with the Presidency was however traced to the failure of the President to pay some outstanding monies to States to enable them meet up with their respective responsibilitie s. The two Governors believe the President and his Finance Minister, Ngozi Okonjo- Iweala, have mismanaged the economy, having lavished several billions of Naira on needless jamborees which have left the nation’s econ omy in dire straits. The two Governors are also accusing the President of allowing crude oil theft to thrive in the Niger Delta which has also contributed to the financial situation of the country. They are accusing the President of knowing the powerful forces behind the thriving industry but he has allegedly refused to stop them for selfish reasons. Sources close to the Governors said Yuguda and Dankwambo, being financial experts themselves, have found the President and Okonjo Iweala’s defense of the economy as ridiculous and laughable. Yuguda is a successful banker who rose to the peak of his career while Dankwambo was the Accountant General of the Federation before becoming Governor of his state. An aide of Dankwambo told Ekekeee in confidence that: “His Excellency knows and Mr President too knows the problem of the economy. We all know the people stealing the crude and the President has proven to be too weak to take any action.”
Posted on: Sat, 05 Oct 2013 11:04:55 +0000
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