As Rivers State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) stakeholders intensify the agitation for power shift to the riverine area, the camp of the governorship aspirant, Chief Nyemsom Wike, is swimming against the tide, insisting that the former Minister of State for Education, who hails from Ikwerre, the birthplace of Governor Rotimi Amaechi, should fly the ticket. Correspondent CLARICE AZUATALAM examines the hard choices before the opposition party.
Rivers State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is at the crossroads. The agitation for power shift to the riverine area is mounting. But, it appears that the national leadership of the party is bent of fielding former Minister of State for Education Chief Nyensom Wike – to the consternation of agitators who believe that power should rotate between the upland and lowland areas.
Governor Rotimi Amaechi is working hard to hand over to another All Progressives Congress (APC) governor in next year’s election. But, while the APC is zoning the governorship slot to the riverine area, in the spirit of equity, justice and fair play, the PDP seems to be indifferent to the popular yearning.
Multiple crises
The crisis started last year when an Abuja High Court sacked the former Chairman, Chief Godspower Ake, and the Secretary, Hon. Adokiye Oruwari.
Ake and Oruwari were replaced by Chief Felix Obuah and Hon. Walter Ibiba. Obuah has never hidden the fact that he is out to do the bidding of his benefactor, Wike, who is the leading aspirant.
The former minister launched his campaign structure, the Grassroots Development Initiative (GDI). The activities of the Wike/Obua coalition triggered the crisis that polarised the House of Assembly. When it reached the climax, it resulted into the fracas that nearly claimed the life of a lawmaker, Hon Michael Chinda. That was when five legislators wanted to impeach the Speaker of the House, Hon. Otelemaba Dan-Amachree and replace him with Hon. Evans Bipi, as a prelude to the to impeachment of the governor.
For about six months, the House was sealed up by the police. Subsequently, the lawmakers were sitting at the old auditorium of Government House. The anti-Amaechi lawmakers shunned the sittings, despite pleas by their colleagues.
Judicial crisis
From the legislature, the trouble infiltrated into the judicial arm of government, following the retirement of the former Chief Judge of the state, Justice Iche Ndu.
While the governor wanted to replace Ndu with Justice Peter Agumagu, the National Judiciary Council (NJC) insisted that the preferred person for the seat should be Justice Daisy Okocha. Both judges are people of pedigree and repute. But, Amaechi camp feared that, if he did not have his way, his foes could penetrate the judiciary and orchestrate his removal.
Later, some courts were attacked and judiciary staff, who said that their lives were not safe, decided to down tools since April 10.
Crisis of zoning
Many believe that Wike is not favoured by zoning. But, he has consistently said that being an Ikwere man is not an obstacle. He therefore, came up with the concept of “Ikwerre North and Ikwerre South,” pointing out that Amaechi is from Ikwerre North and he is from Ikwerre South. In fact, various groups have endorsed him for the governorship. But, his claim has not wiped out the upland/riverine dichotomy that has made zoning more compelling. Therefore, the plot to make Wike the consensus candidate has not gone down well with stakeholders.
Party members who have objected to his candidature have been edged out of the party. One of them is the former lawmaker and Commissioner for Transport, Hon. Elemchukwu Ogbowu. Another chieftain, Chief Anabs Sara-Igbe, has also suffered the same fate for condemning the endorsement.
To resolve the zoning crisis, the Concerned Rivers State PDP Stakeholders met on September 23 at Delta Hotels, Old GRA, Port Harcourt. The group is led by former Commissioner for Education Prof Israel Owate. But, the move was allegedly frustrated by GDI members. There was commotion at the venue. Some people started throwing chairs and tables. Owete could not flag off the meeting, until the police restored order.
The former commissioner, who is a personal friend of the President, accused Obuah of running a two-man executive committee and selling out to Wike and his group. He also said the executive committee was intimidating members, adding that their activities led to the crisis in the House and the suspension and expulsion of some lawmakers.
Owate argued that the Abuja High court judgment that brought in Obuah and Ibiba did not sack the remaining 12 members of the State Working Committee, and ward and local government officers. He said the politics of exclusion is unconstitutional, stressing that it has turned the party to a “limited liability company of those who claimed they incorporated it in the Abuja High court.”
Owate said that Obuah’s style of leadership “has adversely affected and disrupted the functioning of Rivers state PDP at the ward, local government, senatorial districts and state levels as the party does not have a proper membership register and does not have legitimate and properly constituted party officers at the various levels.”
The former university don chided Obah for highhandedness, which led to the alienation of many members. But, he also chided Amaechi for defecting to the APC along with prominent PDP members. He said the defection “has grave implications for the next presidential and governorship elections.”
Stakeholders’ demands
Owate and his team made a six point-demand. These include the dissolution of the two-man committee, the re-registration of party members to produce an authentic membership registers and the re-integration of all returning PDP members most of who are currently stranded.
The group also called for the nullification of the arbitrary suspension and expulsion of members and “the implementation of the PDP constitution, particularly the section that guarantees the policy of rotation and the zoning of party and public elective offices, in pursuance of the principle of equity, justice and fairness.”
Failed reconciliation
After the meeting in Port-Harcourt, the National Working Committee, in what appeared to be an attempt to broker peace among the stakeholders, scheduled a reconciliation meeting. But, it was cancelled at the last minute.
The Administrative Secretary of PDP in the Southsouth zone, Mr. Usen Edemekong, said it was cancelled because it coincided with the PDP unity rally in Benin City, Edo state. But, the rally took place three days after the original date of the meeting. Party members were angry. They thought that the reconciliation meeting would give them an opportunity to address the issues raised in the 22 petitions written by aggrieved members.
A governorship aspirant, Beks Dagogo- Jack, said he had no idea of what prompted the sudden postponement of such an important meeting.”I came for the reconciliation meeting, but we were surprised to be told at the secretariat that the meeting was postponed. I think that it is important for us to meet and reconcile our aggrieved members”, he said.
A chieftain, High Chief Anabs Sara-Igbe, said he was worried that such a crucial meeting could be cancelled, even when it has been widely publicized in the media. He alleged that the party has violated its constitution by declaring that no political office would be zoned.
“The Obuah- led PDP has violated the rule of the party and we don’t want PDP to fail in the state in the 2015 election. Certain provisions of the party restrain the state executive from suspending or expelling certain officers of the party. But Obuah has expelled all commissioners in the state and the entire members of the House of Assembly.
“Nyesom Wike has boasted that he was going to buy everybody that is necessary when the time comes. If this peace meeting does not hold, then, I am afraid, the PDP in Rivers State may be heading for the rocks.”
He added: “We want the state PDP to zone all the political offices because the party’s constitution and the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria make provisions for the rotation of offices.”
The National Executive Committee has kept mute since then.
Complaints about injustice
The aggrieved members have complained to the Prof. Iya Abubakar-led panel at the Legacy House, Abuja on October 9.
This also resulted to a rain of blows at Owate, Sara-Igbe and others by thugs allegedly brought in and aided by Wike. Former Commissioner for Water Resources Mr Lolo Ibienye maintained that he was assaulted over his stand on zoning. Sara-Igbe claimed that he was manhandled and his documents and N50, 000 were taken away from him. He said: “If that is what is called reconciliation, I don’t see how that can be reconciliation. The same Wike himself is tearing the PDP apart.
“And if that continues, the PDP will fail. Mr President should listen to us or he will fail in Rivers state. Politics is a game of interest. Our interest is that governorship must rotate in Rivers state.”
The NEC has kept mute. When the National Chairman, Alhaji Adamu Mu’azu, visited Rivers State, he gave Wike a pat on the back, saying that “Wike, you are on track.” Other governorship aspirants were not around to receive Mu’azu because they said that they were not informed of his visit.
Escalation of crisis
No fewer than 16 aspirants from other ethnic groups are in the race. They are up in arms against Wike. They have condemned his endorsement. They also have grudges over the recent flawed ward congresses. In their view, Wike and his group had hijacked the process and appointed their supporters as members of the Appeal Panel. The said the NEC should “adhere to the policy of rotation and zoning of party and public elective offices” as it is done in Akwa Ibom, Ebonyi, Adamawa and Enugu states. In fact, they called for the disqualification of Wike for peace to return to the troubled chapter. According to them, “anything to the contrary shall jeopardise the success of the party in Rivers state.”
APC and zoning
Amaechi, an Ikwerre, has is at the forefront of the push for zoning. He has said that nobody from his ethnic group will succeed him.
The aggrieved PDP members also believe this line of thought, saying that it is against the tradition for one ethnic group to dominate an elective office. They pointed out that, since Amaechi took over from Sir Celestine Omehia, also an Ikwerre man, it would be unfair for another Ikwerre man to govern the state for now.
This line of argument was also towed by a Board of Trustee member of PDP from Rivers state, Alabo Tonye Graham-Douglas, who warned the party against fielding Wike for the governorship. The Obuah-led executive immediately attacked Graham-Douglas, accusing him anti-party activity.But there are indications that Graham-Douglas has since mended fence with Wike and his group.
A source said that the NEC has believed believed the message sold to it by Wike, who was also the Chairman of Amaechi Campaign Organisation in 2011, that it was his efforts that brought the two million votes, which President Jonathan got in the election.
Wike’s strengths
Wike controls the party machinery. His men are state, local government and ward leaders of the party. As minister, he implemented a lot of “stomach infrastructure” programmes for his supporters. At the primaries, he will beat other aspirants.
PDP at crossroads
However, Wike’s victory at the primaries may not make the PDP to lose the state in next year’s elections. If he is prevented from contesting, he will feel a sense of personal loss and his camp may not work for the party.
