They behave as if PDP is Nigeria and Nigeria is PDP. Nyako and Amaechi are not cowed yet. If you thought that the ongoing crisis within the Peoples Democratic Party was dead (we know you’re smarter than that), these guys just lulled you out of your slumber. Adamawa governor, Murtala Nyako, and his Rivers counterpart, Rotimi Amaechi, have dismissed speculations that they may be compelled to face the Peoples Democratic Party’s disciplinary committee if they do not show up for their October 7 date with President Goodluck Jonathan. [READ: #PDPDiaries: As the scepter of the disciplinary panel hangs over, New PDP’s last shot may be October 7] In separate telephone interviews with the Punch, the governors said threats and intimidation would not make them abandon their cause of returning the party to the path of decency. The aggrieved governors, some party leaders and the President met on September 15, and all parties agreed to continue discussions and refrain from making public statements that could set ablaze an already festering crisis. They also agreed to meet on October 7 to “assess the level of progress” made in the interim. The ‘rebel’ governors, who attended the meeting were Nyako; Amaechi; Jigawa’s Sule Lamido; Kwara’s Abdulfatah Ahmed; Kano’s Rabiu Kwankwaso and Babangida Aliyu(Niger). Sokoto governor Aliyu Wamakko was the only one in the clique who was not at the meeting. Those who represented the Bamanga Tukur side of the Big Umbrella were Akwa Ibom’s Godswill Akpabio; Kogi’s Idris Wada and Cross River’s Liyel Imoke. The President, Vice President Namadi Sambo and the chairman of the party’s Board of Trustees, Chief Tony Anenih also attended the meeting. Other members of the New PDP at the meeting were former Vice-President, Atiku Abubakar and former governors Abdullahi Adamu (Nasarawa), Bukola Saraki (Kwara) and Shaaba Lafiagi (Kwara). But no sooner had the meeting ended that supporters of both parties to the dispute reneged on the ‘ceasefire agreement’ and began a fresh round of verbal exchanges. In his reaction to the events of the past week, Nyako said the arm-twisting tactics being employed by Tukur and his folks was doomed to fail. Nyako, who spoke through his public relations director, Ahmad Sajo, said: “Our position in Adamawa has always been that you cannot negotiate with someone by intimidating him. “You try to create an understanding but they are not exploiting this option. All I am saying is that, let us wait and see.” Then he said this. “They are behaving as if Nigeria is PDP and PDP is Nigeria, that is the impression they want to give.” When he was contacted, Kano governor, Rabiu Kwankwaso simply said, “No comments.” At least, he’s sticking to the ceasefire. On his part, Amaechi, who spoke through his Chief of Staff, Chief Tony Okocha, said it was better for the PDP to use the carrot rather than the stick approach. He said it was wrong for the party to threaten to discipline the aggrieved governors if they didn’t attend the October 7 meeting. Not that the aggrieved governors wouldn’t be there. Okocha said his boss, Amaechi and the other governors were ready to attend the meeting with the President. But they would not be coerced into doing so. In other news, the Presidency has insisted that the alleged one term agreement claimed to have been entered into by President Goodluck Jonathan only exists in the imagination of Niger governor Babangida Aliyu. The Special Adviser to the President on Political Matters, Ahmed Gulak, said this in reaction to a fresh statement credited to Aliyu where he said that it was moral to stick to ‘the’ agreement. So much talk over a piece of paper. It’s 9 days to October 7 by the way.
Posted on: Sun, 29 Sep 2013 08:05:53 +0000
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