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Tag: George

  • George: Rangers have been on my heart

    George: Rangers have been on my heart

     

    Enugu Rangers’ new player, Ifeanyi George has said that his admiration for the Flying Antelopes made it easy for him to move from Enyimba to the league champions immediately he was approached by the club.

    George played for Enyimba last season but decided to quit due to lack of playing time.

    He started life with Rangers on a good note when he got a goal and an assist in their 3-1 win over Kano Pillars in a rescheduled tie played on Sunday.

    “It was an easy decision immediately I was approached by Rangers because the club has been on my heart. I am happy that I started well with the goal and the assist I gave against Pillars. It is just a shame that knee injury couldn’t allow me continue from where I stopped against Pillars in our game with Wikki Tourists,” George told SportingLife.

    George will be hoping that his goals and creativity will help complement the effort of others in the team as the league’s defending champions strive to stay in the elite division just a season after winning the league title.

  • I can’t work with Sheriff, says George

    I can’t work with Sheriff, says George

    Former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) National Deputy Chairman Chief Olabode George has said that he may not play an active role in the party, if Senator Modu Sheriff is sustained as its national chairman.
    He lamented the Apeal Court judgment, which affirmed the former Borno State governor as chairman, describing it as a colossal disaster. However, he ruled out defection from the PDP, saying: “I will not jump to the All Progressives Congress (APC).”
    George told reporters in Lagos that the founding fathers of the party were taken aback by the judgment, adding that it has crippled the on-going reconciliation efforts.
    He said: “I was shocked. This is the voice of Jacob and the hand of Esau. The National Convention of the PDP’s decision was set aside by the court. It is a dark day for democracy. The founding fathers will chuckle in their grave. The surviving ones will be sad.
    “The most populous political party in in Africa is being decimated, being reduced to a chaff as its chief manager is unacceptable. This is the complete muscling of the opposition. I can’t be seen to be playing any role again under the current circumstances. I am a General. I need to retrace my steps. My spirit has never been this low.
    “Many people expect a vibrant opposition. Now, the vibrant party has become an appendage of the opposition. Those masquerading and manipulating things should hand off. It was a bad decision. I am not a lawyer. But, I know what is logical and reasonable as an engineer.”
    George recalled that Senator Ahmed Makarfi emerged as the Chairman of the National Caretaker Committee at a properly organised national convention in Port-Harcourt, capital of Rivers State, maintaining that the refusal of the court to recognize him was more shocking than the effect of the Hiroshima bombing.
    He stressed: “I will not be part of any arrangement that will support Sheriff. It is a voluntary thing. I may take a back seat.”
    The former national deputy chairman said the court ruling may make reconciliation difficult, noting that Sheriff has never shown any interest in negotiation and reconciliation.
    George queried: “Sheriff is in a position of legal strength. But, does he have the muscle and the people behind him? He stormed out of the reconciliation. What reconciliation can take place again?”
    The retired soldier also chided the PDP members of the Lagos State House of Assembly who have defected to the All progressives Congress (APC), saying that they were traitors.
    He said: “It is disappointing. Those who tried in the past, where are they today? If you bite the finger that fed you, you are heading for perfidy. Can they be trusted in their new party? They have disappointed the constituency that elected them. Did they consult their constituencies? It was the most irresponsible decision. The people voted for the PDP. It was shameful.”
    George rejected the explanation by the defectors, saying that their allusion to crisis in the PDP was meaningless. He stressed: “Which crisis? I am ready for a challenge. There is no political party in this country as steady as the PDP. Any decision taken at the national convention is sacrosanct. Only another national convention can change it. Now, the court has changed it.
    “In 16 years of the PDP, we never decimated any party. We only used the power of government to woo the minds and hearts of the people. Does Sheriff knows the norms, history and culture of this party? There were ward, local government, zonal, state and finally, national convention, according to the PDP constitution, which was not flouted. The NEC meeting approved the date of the convention.”
    George said instead of wasting his time in the PDP under Sheriff, he would team up with Afenifere, the “pan-Yoruba socio-cultural group,” which is now trying to divest itself from political leaning.
    He praised Lagos State Governor Akinwunmi Ambode for his infrastructural development in Epe Division, urging him to replicate it other areas, including Lagos Island, Akowonjo and Alimoso.
    He added: “His infrastructural development of Epe is commendable. He is bringing the rural communities into modernity. It is a farming an fishing community. Economic actitivies will spring up there. But, I also want him to replicate that on Lagos Island, Akowonjo and Alimoso.
    “he should look at education, health and standard of living of the people. Unemployment is a cancer. Even, the children of the rich are lacking employment, Unemployment is a gun powder.”

  • How PDP can survive, by George

    How PDP can survive, by George

    Former Deputy National Chiarman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Chief Bode George recently marked his 71st birthday in Lagos. He spoke with reporters on the state of the nation, the crisis in the party and other issues. MUSA ODOSHIMOKHE was there.

    What is your assessment of the state of the nation?
    Many topical issues have come to the fore these days. Abraham Lincoln said that it is not when everything is rosy that we know who is a leader. It is when there is problem, tribulation that you know who are genuine leaders. I believe this is still relevant as in Lincoln’s days. So, where are we going as a nation and this is not political now.I belong to the PDP but at the same time General Muhammadu Buhari and I belongs to a very important profession in this country, which is the military. I also retired as a General and when I sit back and keep thinking that what is happening, this is not issue of politics now.
    Which of the issues do you think should be quickly addressed?
    I look at the issue of the Niger Delta militants, the Boko Haram, the comments and movements of Nigerians about our brothers in the South South; my advice to my Oga (Buhari)is softly softly. Like my grandmother used to say, slow slow catch monkey. Those people who lived in the South South also Nigerians, they are not enemies of this country. The degradation of the place is despicable. The late President Umaru Yar’adua went into dialogue with them and came up with a solution to improve the lives of those youths and many of them through the amnesty programme, many are abroad studying different courses. Many of them are now stranded in Universities both in Nigeria and abroad. Now, thinking as an economist because I also did an MBA, that area is the source of income to our treasury. Our oil production has dropped massively and that is affecting the income of this country. If you now think how much will be expended to keep them in school and support those people versus how much we are losing into the treasury, there is need to dialogue. I plead with Oga as a Staff Officer, as a junior and as a Naval Officer, the inclemency of that arrear will not augur well for any welfare. He should please reconsider it because as a political leader he loses nothing by encouraging your citizens for better life. So, if we don’t have an income how will they do the social services required for the majority of Nigerians- supporting the education, ensuring that salaries are paid at all times, all these Naira nosediving. We are the largest concentration of blacks anywhere in the world. There is no known profession in the world where you wont find at least two Nigerians that are experts, we are incredibly gifted. So, what is our problem? I’ve seen both military and civilian government. The beauty of what is a democratic system is that you must dialogue, you must reach out and listen, and otherwise, it becomes monotony. Democracy is not monolithic, it’s a creation of dialogue; sometimes you win some and sometimes you lose some. That is one major area of cocern for me as a Nigerian at this age. I was told that the pipeline they recently repaired was blown up again.
    What are you advising the government to do to halt the crisis in the Southsouth?
    What is required in that region is not warfare, it is dialogue. There must be a lot of patience. When you contest an election and you wants the people to vote for you, what you are simply telling them is trust me I will use the resources of that nation for the benefit of the people and not for the benefit of few. Even when people are talking rubbish, you must listen. So, politically, we must endear ourselves to the majority. I remembered during his tenure, President Jonathan sets up these mobile schools for the Fulanis, nomadic education. It is because that kind of thing is akin to people from that part of our country; you must take care of them. In another part or section of the country, where they require another support, you must support them. This is not politics but talking as patriotic Nigerian. Oga should sit back, take a deep breath and revisit some of these issues, you lose nothing that is why you canvassed for their votes, willingly they gave you, so you are a servant to them.
    The PDP has been engulfed in crisis for a while, but the struggle for the Ondo State governorship ticket got to the Supreme Court before it was resolved…
    There is a fundamental tripod in; a three-legged body is a very stable platform. The same thing in democratic governance, there is a tripod-the executive, legislature and the judiciary, it’s a three-legged body, very stable platform but if one is out or wobbly, you have two left and its not stable anymore. Although they are independent of each other, they have to work hand-in-glove to sustain democratic dispensation. When I saw what happened, I thought I was in another panel. The electoral laws are clear on primaries and that was what was followed in Akure to elect Jegede as the party’s candidate. But it was laughable that someone went to Ibadan, Oyo State, conducted its own primaries that defied the provisions of the electoral act. They now went to this Justice Abang who now stamped it for them and legitimized and illegality, what will history write about this Justice Abang. We must however commend the ruling of the Supreme Court which threw out Poroye’s abuse of court processes and finally re-established the rule of law and the fairness doctrine in our nation. The deliberate attempt to distort and sabotage the democratic norm has now been nullified and disowned. Truth, equity, the sturdy balance of the democratic frame are now alive and well in our nation. Thank God, democracy has been saved.
    The justices of the Supreme Court have firmly re-established the hope of the common man in the impartial thoroughness of the judiciary. In putting themselves on the right side of history, the Supreme Court Justices have declared very loudly that the rule of law must always prevail over arbitrariness and the rule of the jungle in order to protect the integrity and the delicate sinews of the democratic structures. In their adherence to preserve the truth and protect the delicate tripod of the democratic platform, the Supreme Court justices have invoked the chastening words of the Holy Book, Amos 5 verse 22- 24:
    “Even though, you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them. Though you bring choice fellowship offerings, I will have no regard for them…..But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never failing stream!”
    The underlying import of this ruling is clear and firm: the Makarfi caretaker committee is implicitly affirmed as the authentic and valid entity to steer the cause of our party to a new dawn of progress and stability.
    Do you support the call for the change of name for the PDP as being moved in some quarters?
    Well, I know some people have been running around that we should change the name of the party, some even say let us leave PDP and start another party. But the truth is that the hood doesn’t make the monk. We are Nigerians; in whatever masquerade you want to come out, we are still Nigerians. The rest of the world is watching us. I will say this, to err is human to forgive is divine; Yes, we (PDP) erred, by our last election we erred. We made a fundamental mistake and we should accept that to the public. There is nobody who is above mistake.
    What are the mistakes?
    We made many mistakes; the way election was handled, the way it was conducted. I won’t say more that.
    Is Ali Modu Sheriff part of the mistakes?
    He was a monumental mistake. He takes one crazy person to throw a stone in the well and one million Professors won’t be able to find the stone, that is where we have found ourselves.
    With the mistakes the PDP has made, do you think the party has a future?
    Very brilliant! Let me tell you why I said that. If you look at the historical establishment of this party, the founding fathers, Chief Bola Ige, Dr. Alex Ekwueme, Baba Solomon Lar, among others under the same roof. Since 1952, all political parties are based on purely on tribes; Action Group, Western Region; Northern Peoples Congress (NPC), North; and the NCNC (East) though it was started in Lagos by Herbert Macaulay but took to the East by late Nnamdi Azikiwe. All these parties are heavily tribal parties. But the PDP has a very deep rooted taproot, otherwise we would have gone under. Would you leave your house and build a new one because your house is leaking? So, when people say PDP is going to die and they should go and change the name, I differ with them on that because the tap root of PDP is solid otherwise after we lost the election we would have gone under completely. The best thing we can do is to strengthen the PDP and we are already in the process.

  • Some George-an logic

    The political roforofo (mud) fight, over the tussle on the Ondo Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) rightful candidate in the governorship election, is attracting more partisans by the day.

    Since the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), bowed to a court order and replaced Eyitayo Jegede, SAN, with Jimoh Ibrahim as the PDP candidate, the polity has had no peace.

    First, Ondo Governor, Segun Mimiko, stormed Abuja to confer with President Muhammadu Buhari on the imperative of not allowing Ondo to “burn”.

    Then, a lobby from the Ibrahim camp alleged bribery of the panel of judges handling the case, forcing the thoroughly embarrassed judges to recuse themselves; and returned the case file to the Court of Appeal president, for re-assignment to other judges.

    Well, the latest joiner of the fray is the inimitable Bode George, incidentally a former military governor of the old Ondo State (now Ondo and Ekiti states), who reportedly crowed, at the height of the hubris of military rule, that the Ondo folks would know a “Lagos boy was here”.

    Old man George is not finding the Justice Okon Abang order, unhorsing Jegede, funny at all — and he is not coy to say so. That is perfectly legitimate and democratic.

    What is neither democratic nor legitimate is George’s rather quaint logic of blaming INEC for obeying a court order, even if he admitted that, before that order, INEC had dutifully listed Jegede (and would likely follow any future orders, however the pendulum swings).

    Hear Pa George: “Even, until Abang’s mischievous ruling, the INEC had rightly listed Jegede as the legitimate candidate of the PDP.  Now,” he queried, “why upset the apple cart?”

    But pray, how is that INEC’s business or headache?  If INEC did something (which George admitted was ‘right’) but the court ordered otherwise, what is INEC’s fault in all of that?  Upsetting the apple cart or not, it is the courts George should be talking to, not INEC, doing its job as a lawful corporate citizen.

    But, of course!  Demonisation of persons and institutions, because they cannot get their way with them, is the standard fare of Nigerian politicians.  So, George was only beating an over-beaten path!

    From INEC, George also latched onto the Presidency, in a case clearly the judiciary’s.  He wanted the president — virtually at least — to overrule the courts, even he has no direct locus standi, beyond that his own party would also contest the Ondo governorship.

    “I appeal to President Buhari to ensure that justice invariably prevails in Ondo State. Though the case is now before the appellate court, the body language of our president is equally important in ensuring the preservation of our democratic tenets.” Is he the Chief Justice of Nigeria?

    Besides, the “body language of our president”?  Is the president then some Draco or Solon, lawgivers in antiquated Greece, evolving its democracy?  Or an elected president in 21st century Nigeria, who though operates in a democracy still evolving, is nevertheless bound by constitutional checks-and-balances?

    Now, if George pushes a “body language” now to favour his party, how can he, in all good conscience, not to talk of sound logic, declaim a body language that, in future, disfavours the same party?

    Yet, George provides the antidote to his George-an illogic, by his pitch to the judiciary.  Hear him: “Our judges must at all times refrain from arbitrary rulings that can plunge our democracy into the abyss. Justice must prevail in Ondo State.”

    About time!  At long last, the old man is properly directing his message!

  • Ibrahim can’t be Ondo PDP candidate, says George

    Ibrahim can’t be Ondo PDP candidate, says George

    A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olabode George, has flayed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)’s decision to recognise Chief Jimoh Ibrahim as the party’s governorship candidate in Ondo State.

    He said the decision was unsavory and disturbing, adding that it was capable of destabilising the chapter.

    George said in a statement in Lagos that Mr. Eyitayo Jegede (SAN), who emerged as the flag bearer at a primary witnessed by the INEC officials, was the authentic candidate.

    Chiding the electoral agency for creating chaos, he said: “The decision is not only wrong, it is an inexcusable assault upon justice, fairness and morality.”

    George added: ‘By all measures of equity and appropriateness,  Jimoh Ibrahim cannot claim to be the bonafide candidate of our party in Ondo State. Even, Ibrahim’membership of the PDP is still a subject of debate.

    “Ibrahim went to an hotel  room in Ibadan, Oyo State and declared himself a candidate of an election that will decide who will govern Ondo State. What a travesty of rationality!”

    The party chieftain recalled that INEC officials witnessed the lawful shadow poll that produced jegede as candidate, wondering why the electoral body decided to close its eyes to the truth. He added: “Even, until Abang’s mischievous ruling, the  INEC had rightly listed Jegede as the legitimate candidate of the PDP. Now, why upset the apple-cart? Ondo State had been peaceful and calm. The campaign had been going on without rancou  r.

    “The Justice Okon Abang ruling, which had forced the hands of INEC has now created tension and deep- seated uncertainties everywhere.

    “I appeal to President Buhari to ensure that  justice invariably prevails in Ondo State. Though the case is now before the appellate court, the body language of our president is equally important in ensuring the preservation of our democratic tenets.

    “Justice must not only be done in this case, it must be carried out swiftly and smoothly to convince our people that truth and fairness are the most crucial ingredients of democracy.

    “Our judges   must at all times refrain from arbitrary rulings that can plunge our democracy into the abyss. Justice must prevail in Ondo State. Decency and fairplay must determine the outcome of the appellate ruling.”

    Urging the people to remain calm, George said: “I know that this injustice will not endure. This darkness will pass. Justice, truth and common sense will eventually triumph over arbitrariness and the brazen attempt to steal the people’s mandate.”

     

  • Type of Chairman PDP needs, by George

    Type of Chairman PDP needs, by George

    Former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) National Deputy Chairman Chief Olabode George is an aspirant for the national chairmanship. He spoke with EMMANUEL OLADESU on the protracted leadership crisis and his plans for the party.

    Why do you want to be the national chairman of the PDP?

    It is because the party needs a serious surgery to bring it back to where we were. There is the need for us to rebuild the party. As one of the party managers who has experience, as the national vice chairman, national deputy chairman and deputy national deputy chairman overall, I have worked with so many committed and loyal people and we delivered. The ship of the party is in comatose. So, people said, why can’t you go for the national chairmanship, if it is zoned to the Southwest. That’s why I decided to take up the challenge; to really build our party and transform the platform.

    What’s the assurance that the convention will still hold, in view of the court order obtained by Senator Modu Sheriff?

    A court of the same jurisdiction gave Makarfi the order to hold the convention. There is another order that there should be no convention. They are courts of the same jurisdiction. If it is an Appeal Court that gave that order, then, we will obey it. Since there is no higher court that has given an order, we are going ahead with it. The Chairman of the Caretaker Committee, Senator Ahmed Makarfim has said that it will hold.

    Could you shed light on the zoning, which has torn the Southwest PDP apart?

    No. It has not torn any zonal chapter apart. We had an election. Before the national convention, you have started from the ward, local government, state and zone. The national delegates emerged from the local governments. The procedures and processes were approved by the NEC. Sheriff chaired that NEC meeting. He obtained a form for the national chairmanship, filled the form and appeared for screening. All those processes made him to cease as the national chairman. All those parading themselves as the factional chairmen and zonal officers have ceased to be officers. We held our zonal congress where new leaders were elected. The constitution is very clear. They are just trying to create unnecessary trouble. But, a lot of negotiation is going on now to cool everybody’s temper and allow sanity to reign. i pray that there will be reconciliation before the convention. What is causing the problem personal ambition, and ego. the problem is not structural. Many meetings are going on and I am sure we will get to the end of it.

    What edge do you think you have over other chairmanship aspirants?

    The only thing I have done since 1998 was to have been one of the managers of the party. experience cannot be retired by any human being, which means you can use your wealth of experience till you die. If you have experience, you will reduce the stress and time of decision making. I was the Vice Chairman (Southwest). We won five of six states during my tenure. I became the Deputy Chairman (South). We won all the states in the South, except Lagos. Then, I became the Deputy Chairman overall we won 28 states out of 36. I was at the party secretariat for 10 years. Can you ignore that? With the crisis that is on now, I draw an analogy. as a master mariner, a sailor, we have the ship of state of the PDP at sea. It is facing a turbulent storm. Water is coming in. If you don’t have an experienced, competent captain, the ship will go down. What you need to do is to stabilise the party and bring the ship safely back to harbour. That is the need of the party at this  point in time. It is not for a green horn. It is not for somebody who is just two years old in the party. Will you give yourself up for surgery for a fresh medical doctor who has just graduated or you will prefer an experienced, tested surgeon. The PDP is the biggest and the largest party in Africa. Somebody who has just joined a house and still being shown the kitchen, the toilet and still learning the rope, suddenly, he wants to be the head of the house. It takes time. The PDP is not a tribal party. It is not a mushroom party. That is the only strong national party. That’s why we have not gone under. No matter the wind that blows, we will survive. We have the constitution. We have the culture and ethos that are not written that guide us. I was the Director-General of the Presidential Campaign that brought Yar’Adua and Jonathan in. I have been involved in conflict resolution across the zones; in Ife/Modakeke crisis, Ngige crisis, in the Northwest.

    What is the assurance that the PDP Governors’ Forum, which is an influential bloc in the party, will support your ambition?

    I will take my case before them. The PDP Governors’ Forum is a special bloc. But, that is not the only forum that can lift the party up. It is a collective responsibility. I know some of them. They have been senators, House if Assembly and Representatives members, commissioners and so on. The mistakes of the past should not be repeated. We don’t want the party to go into ruins. There you be consultations and analysis before you settle for somebody. For me, the will of the Almighty God will be done.

    Why are some aspirants not obeying the zoning directive?

    The reason for zoning is this: we realised that tribal and religious party of hold did not know how how to share power. The founding fathers who formed the PDP took up the division of the country into six zones. Chief Solomon Lar, Bola Ige, Alex Ekweme and Adamu Ciroma said the top six  positions should be zoned to the six geo-political zones. The positions are the President, Vice President, senate President, Speaker of House of Representatives, Secretary to the Government of the Federation, and National Chairman of the party. After eight years, the positions are re-zoned. The positions zoned to the North will come to the South and those zoned to the South will go to the North. It was for fair play and balance. When is zoned to a region, the region will zone them to the states. But, nobody is prevented from contesting. It has been there for 16 years. When the Southwest was to have the Speaker, it didn’t  have it. So, when the chairmanship came, it was decided that it should gp to the Southwest. In Switzerland, the Presidency is rotated.

    You supported Jimi Agbaje for governor. The two of you are not contesting for the chairman. What led to the parting of ways?

    There is no parting of ways. We are human beings. We were told some people from outside the zine are pushing him to contest and so on. The caution should have come from him. This is democracy. He wants to try his luck. He is less than two years old in the party. We must be weary. he is not a kid. If it is wish to do it, so be it. But, let the will of the Almighty prevail. There is a time for everything. The people will also think whether they want to entrust the PDP to a green on, that is an issue.  I supported his governorship bid. if this is how he should pay back, I wish him the best of luck in life. As you lay your bed, so you will lie on it. All the stakeholders met in Akure and they unanimously endorsed Chief Olabode George in Akure. That means they recognise what i have done. That is gratifying for me.

    If you become the national chairman, will you be able to lead the party to victory in 2019

    I can assure you, that, with the power of the Almighty God, we will win. We will present our acore card to the PDP and they will look at it in relation with the APC. But, we would have worked hard and stabilise the party.

  • PDP CHAIRMANSHIP Agbaje, Dokpesi, George or who?

    PDP CHAIRMANSHIP Agbaje, Dokpesi, George or who?

    Sunday Oguntola reports on the many behind-the-scene intrigues and politicking playing out ahead of Wednesday’s proposed national convention of the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP)

    STAKEHOLDERS in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) are agitated over the nagging crisis in the main opposition party ahead of the national convention slated for Wednesday in Port Harcourt, Rivers State capital.  The convention, which was designed to serve as the springboard for the relaunch of the PDP, is not only being threatened but also poised to further polarise the party.

    While the Senator Ali Modu-Sheriff’s faction has called for the outright cancellation of the convention, the Senator Ahmed Makarfi-led Caretaker Committee insisted nothing will stop the exercise. Though the party has set up a reconciliation team headed by Prof Jerry Gana, there are feelers that the disharmony within key chieftains might be far from over.

    Talks are ongoing with the feuding camps to resolve the lingering crisis, which has turned the party that ruled the nation for 16 years until last May, a sorry shadow of its old self. Investigations revealed that self-interest and big egos are the main challenges to healing old wounds in the PDP. The national convention, which is highly controversial, on its self has further bought this to the fore.

    Sources informed the caretaker committee and governors elected on the platform of the party are at loggerheads over who should emerge national chairman of the party. Both camps, according to finding, are aware occupant of the post will essentially dictate the direction and shape of the party for the next three years or so.

    This realisation, it was gathered, is at the heart of the volcano threatening to descend on the party over the post. While PDP governors are bent on picking a candidate that will dance to their tune, the caretaker committee backed by elders in the party are poised to stop the governors at their track.

    The elders, who are working with the committee, are looking towards a candidate that can stand up to the governors and keep the party from influences, especially from elected politicians under the platform. The elders, according to sources, are bothered that the governors have had undue overbearing influences that affect the fortunes of the party in several states.

    An elder from the South south told our correspondent under strict anonymity: “The root of our crisis are the governors. Many of them govern the states and still want to dictate what happens in the party.

    “It is worse for those who are leaving offices. They always want to impose their candidates. That is what is responsible for the many disgruntled elements we have in several states. “That is why we have factions in almost all states in the federation. We are determined to stop the governors from hijacking the party’s apparatus and the first move is to fight off whatever candidate they have in mind.”

    The forces for, against Dokpesi Already, this dichotomy is already playing out in the race for the party’s chairmanship. On my side is the caretaker committee, which is reportedly rooting for Emeritus Chairman of DAAR Communications, Chief Raymond Dokpesi.

    Dokpesi, as far as the committee is concerned, is a heavyweight that no governor can push around. Highly travelled and exposed, it is believed that he would put the governors where they rightly belong while also muscling the PDP back to reckoning ahead of 2019 national elections.

    His expansive media empire, some of those disposed to his candidature say, will also help to project the activities and rebirth of the party across the nation. They consider him a gallant fighter who cannot be bamboozled by the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC).

    His preference, it was gathered, was responsible for the zoning of the post to the south. Last week, Dokpesi visited Makarfi at his Kaduna’s country home to solicit support for his candidature. The visit, PDP sources said, was planned to send a clear message that the media mogul is the preferred candidate of the committee.

    Makarfi, who warmly received the chairmanship contestant, said: “I stand by what I’ve been saying that the race is open. Even though zoning has always been in the party’s constitution, it does not exclude other aspirants because nothing should exclude any other person and at the end of the day, the people will freely have access to all the candidates and freely vote for whoever they want.

    “Our party needs to move away from the era of imposition as events of “automatic ticket” led PDP to its present situation, and that is why I want to ensure level-playing field for all.”

    He praised the Edo-born politician, saying he is the kind of unifier and dogged fighter that the PDP needs at a moment like this. He is said to have been assured by the Makarfi-led committee that he would contest and win the post.

    But the governors are not unmindful of the thinking of the committee. They, on their part, are determined to stop Dokpesi at all costs, a development that reportedly led to his tactical exclusion through the micro-zoning arrangement.

    The arrangement, according to findings, was hatched by PDP governors spearheaded by Rivers State’s Nyesome Wike. The Rivers governor, investigations revealed, is the arrowhead of the plans by PDP governors to run the shows in the party.

    They believe Dokpesi is too independent-minded to follow their leading. Some of the governors have also pointed out that he has a running case with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) bordering on alleged involvement in N2.1 billion arms deal.

    His ongoing trail, they believe, will be a further dent on the battered image of the party at a time it is struggling to rebrand.

    Enter Bode George With the active connivance of Ekiti’s Ayo Fayose and Ondo’s Segun Mimiko, Wike reportedly plotted to have the post zoned to the south-west last week.

    Rising from a meeting last week, the South West zonal executives said the position of the National Chairman has been zoned to Ogun/ Lagos states; treasurer to Ondo/ Ekiti and Deputy Publicity Secretary to Oyo/ Osun states.

    The factional National Deputy Chairman South West, Dr. Eddy Olafeso, said the arrangement was to prevent needless rancours ahead of the exercise in Port-Harcourt.

    To show its preference, the meeting had one of the main contestants, Chief Bode George in attendance. Mimiko and Fayose also attended to show support for his candidature. That effectively confirms George as the governors’ anointed candidate.

    Surprisingly though, George does not have the support of all PDP governors. He is said to be riding only on the support of Fayose, Mimiko and Wike. A few in the Southeast are also to be disposed to his ambition.

    But some like Enugu state governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi and his Delta counterpart, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa are believed not to be too keen to George’s candidature. Some of these governors believe he comes to the exercise with a baggage following his imprisonment over alleged contract-splitting while he was chairman of the Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA), an indictment that the Supreme Court finally ruled against.

    Having someone like him as PDP chairman, they believe will be a hard-sell to the public, who will become seeing him as an ex-convict despite his vindication by the apex court. Besides, he is perceived as too old for the post. But his backers say what counts is the experience he brings to the job.

    Agbaje as an alternative

    This is why some of the governors are reportedly backing former PDP governorship candidate in Lagos state, Jimi Agbaje. Agbaje, according to his backers, is urbane and clean enough to spearhead the revival of the PDP. They say he comes to the contest without a baggage and a soaring public perception that is considered important to sell the PDP again to the weary public.

    Agbaje, who has picked the nomination form, said: “What I bring to the table is that I am not a member of any faction or any tendencies. I am in a position to talk to everybody to ensure as you love the PDP, then it is time to come back to the zone and appeal to those who feel very strongly to join us because Nigeria cannot make the progress it deserves without a viable opposition and that PDP is going to provide that opposition as an alternative government and in a responsible manner.

    “We are going to provide that robust opposition but in a very responsible manner.” On the zoning arrangement, he said: “So for me, I am not worried that there is this thing; the party is clear. It is zoned to the south, which is the preferred choice.

    “Now it is for those in the south to decide what they want. If they say it is the Southwest, so be it. If you feel you can run against the tide, nobody will stop you.

    “We must continue to go back to the constitution; the constitution does not give you the power to exclude anybody. When you exclude you create tension. If you say look, this is what we think is best, if you do not agree, then, get into the field and let us run this race.

    “We accept that mistakes were made in the past in the PDP, especially with our internal democracy. So we have to go back to the position of the founding fathers of our party and that means that we have go back to our constitution.

    “That is very important. We have to be more all-inclusive as we have been thus far. It is about bringing people nearer rather than sending them far away from the party. Everybody must fell to be part of this party.”

    He is also said to have the support of a few elder statesman, who feels the public respect he demands is critical to reworking the party back to winning ways. But his critics believe he lacks any political clout to become chairman of the main opposition party.

    Agbaje, they point out, has never won any election. They even claim he has never won his ward, let alone local government for the PDP despite being a governorship candidate. Besides, some believe he is just fronting for George, his godfather, who ensured his emergence as gubernatorial candidate in 2015 general elections.

    Voices of dissent

    There are also former Minister of Education, Professor Tunde Adeniran from Ekiti state and former Minister of Sports and Youth Development, Prof. Taoheed Adedoja from Oyo State. Both have picked the nomination form and maintained they remain in the contest despite the zoning of the post to Lagos and Ogun States.

    Former Ogun Governor Gbenga Daniels has stepped down for Dokpesi. His move was allegedly influenced by PDP governors backing the media owner.

    Adeniran, after picking his forms during the week, said‎ he is still very much in the race as he is committed to repositioning the party towards greatness and redirecting it in actualising the dreams of the founding fathers if given the mandate.

    “‎I want to assure all our party members and Nigerians at large that my venture into the chairmanship position of our great party has no other motive than to reposition, rebrand and put the party on the path of greatness. As a founding member, who has remained with the party in thick and thin and served in various frontline capacities, I possess the fortitude and experience to help the party achieve its objectives.

    “At this crucial period of our party and national polity, we need someone who has genuine interest of the party and is acceptable across boards; someone that has no integrity issue. I believe our delegates will appreciate the great need of the party for the personality I represent,” he said.

    Nowhere to hide  Even if the convention holds, choosing someone to lead the party is certain to further polarise it. Should Dokpesi be excluded by the zoning arrangement, he is bound to fight back in no small way. If George wins the contest, he will find it hard to keep the party as one because some stakeholders will see him as a handpicked candidate.

    Should Mr. ‘Neutral’ Agbaje gets the nod, he will have powerful governors and stakeholders to contest with. His gentleman mien may also mean the party will lose some of its bites as an opposition voice.

    Aside from that, the Modu Sheriff’s camp is waiting in the wing to throw spanners into the party’s reconciliation efforts. It appears the PDP has nowhere to hide from crisis. Wherever the pendulum swings, the party, once dubbed the biggest in Africa, will have a lot of house cleaning to do for the next foreseeable future.

  • Why other aspirants should step down for George, by Lagos PDP stakeholders

    Why other aspirants should step down for George, by Lagos PDP stakeholders

    • Southwest Reconciliation Committee to meet aggrieved chieftains

    Efforts to unite the Southwest Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), ahead of the proposed national convention, has kicked off as the members of the Reconciliation Committee resolved to meet with aggrieved chieftains to resolve the zoning crisis.

    The Reconciliation Committee, party sources disclosed, is expected to meet with four aggrieved blocs in the zone between now and next week to harmonise positions on the zoning of the national chairmanship.

    The aggrieved blocs are Senator Kashamu Buruji and his camp, the factional zonal leadership, led by Chief Makanjuola Ogundipe, aggrieved national chairmanship aspirants and factional executives from Ekiti, Ondo, Osun and Ogun states.

    Members of the Reconciliation Committee include Chief Yekini Adeojo, Senator Teslim Folarin, Senator Kofo Bucknor, Chief Ebenezer Babatope Chief Shuaib Oyedokun, Alhaja Salmont Badru, Elder Wole Oyelese and Dr. Eddy Olafeso.

    The zoning crisis has escalated in the Southwest, following the decision of the zonal leadership to zone the position to Ogun and Lagos states. The two PDP governors; Olusegun Mimiko of Ondo State and his Ekiti State counterpart, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, jointly presided over the meeting where the decision was taken, following the decision of the Ahmed Makarfi-led National caretakr Committee to zone the slot to the Southwest.

    There are five national chairmanship aspirants from the zone. Two of them, Chief Bode George and Mr. Jimi Agbaje, are from Lagos. Otunba Gbenga Daniel is from Ogun State. But, the other two aspirants who are not favoured by the “zoning within zoning;” Prof. Taoheed Adedoja from Oyo State and Prof. Tunde Adeniran from Ekiti State, have kicked against their exclusion.

    Some party leaders from Osun, Ondo and Ekiti states have also rejected the new arrangement, saying that it was in bad faith. At the ratification meeting held in Akure, the Ondo State capital, on Monday, factional chairmen from the three states stormed out, decrying what they described as injustice.

    A source said: “The Reconciliation Committee has identified four aggrieved blocs. Between now nd next week, the members will traverse the length and breath of the zone to pacify aggrieved members. Some people left the Akure meeting in annoyance. They must be pacified. The purpose is to ensure that we put our house together, ahead of the Port Harcourt convention.”

    The reconciliation notwithstanding, the aspirants have intensified their campaigns in the zone. Yesterday, Lagos State PDP Stakeholders Forum reiterated its support for the chairmanship ambition of Chief Bode George, urging other contestants, including Prof. Tunde Adeniran, Prof. Taoheed Adedoja and Mr. Jimi Agbaje, to step down for him.

    Rising from a meeting in Lagos, prominent party leaders alleged that Southeast and Southsouth governors were trying to impose Agbaje, who was sponsored for last year’s governorship election by George and other leaders.

    The chieftains described the pharmacist-turned politician as a new comer who may not be able to reconcile party members at this critical stage when the party is torn apart by leadership crisis.

    Former Lagos State Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Hon. Philip Aigboji, who spoke on their behalf, reiterated that George has been endorsed as a consensus candidate, even before he was endorsed by the Southwest PDP leadership.

    He said George, who had served as national vice chairman, national deputy chairman and presidential campaign coordinator, is more qualified than a new comer who lacks experience in party management.

    Aigboji added: “We have absolute confidence in Chief Olabode George. We do not need a non-starter to lead our party. There are some aspirants claiming to be in the race after the party has zoned the slot toOgun and Lagos states. We will not tolerate indiscipline and disloyalty in the PDP.”

    The former commissioner complained about the antics of elements, who he described as extraneous forces working against the interest of the Southwest, advising them to desist from dividing the zone.

    He recalled that the Southwest PDP had been robbed of the Speakership of the House of Representatives in the past, owing to the divisive tendencies of internal and external forces militating against the unity and interest of the region.

    Aigboji added: “The proper thing is that other aspirants-Prof. Adeniran, Prof. Taoheed Adedoja, Raymond Dokpesi and Uche Secondus should step down. We all know who the cap fits. Justice and fairness demand that the Southwest should be allow to pick its preferred choice. We are passing theougj a phase now. Our party will come out stronger.”

  • PDP chairman: Dokpesi ‘won’t step down for George’

    PDP chairman: Dokpesi ‘won’t step down for George’

    •Fayose: we’ve no anointed candidate

    An aspirant for the national chairmanship of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Raymond Dokpesi, has debunked speculation making the rounds that he had stepped down for a fellow contestant and the party’s former Deputy National Chairman (South), Chief Olabode George.

    Dokpesi made the clarification Saturday evening when he took his campaign for the party’s top post to Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital.

    Ekiti is the 17th state in the South to be visited by Dokpesi since the race for the PDP national chairmanship started ahead of the party’s national convention slated for Port Harcourt on August 17.

    He urged the delegates to entrust him with the party’s chairmanship to bring vibrancy to the office and work with other leaders and members to regain power lost to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) at the 2015 general elections.

    Dokpesi described himself as “a leader, a transformer and a bridge-builder, who will promote, protect and project the PDP by bringing freshness into the party”.

    He alleged that since the APC won the last general election, the ruling party has not allowed the PDP leaders to rest, urging his party members to stand and defend the nation’s democracy.

    Dokpesi, who denied stepping down for George, said: “Some people have alleged that I have surrendered for our elder in the party, Chief Bode George. Let me make it categorically clear that I was born and bred in Ibadan and I do understand and appreciate the Yoruba traditions so much and so I have respect for elders.

    “But there was no time that Chief Bode George and I met and discuss this issue and I did not in any way surrender the race for him. I have not stepped down for him in any way because this time, we need fresh and younger blood that would have the physical and mental alertness for the job. I have been touring 17 states of the federation for just about a week now and I’m still strong.”

    But Governor Ayo Fayose has declared that he and the PDP caucus in Ekiti State have no anointed candidate among the aspirants jostling for the party’s chair.

    He said the state’s delegates would go to Port Harcourt with open minds, praying that God would do justice.

    Fayose described the emergence of former Borno State Governor Ali Modu Sheriff as the party’s National Chairman as a “mistake”.

  • Sheriff’s tenure has ended, says George

    Sheriff’s tenure has ended, says George

    Former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Deputy National Chairman Chief Olabode George yesterday declared that Senator Ali Modu Sheriff’s tenure as chairman has ended. He urged the former Borno State governor to accept his fate.

    He said Sheriff went to the party’s national convention in Port-Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, as a national chairmanship aspirant seeking re-election. After picking the nomination form, he appeared before the pre-convention screening panel for clearance, George said.

    The former Ondo State military governor acknowledged the impact of the leadership crisis on the party, stressing that the PDP can become a vibrant opposition party, if united, coherent and focused.

    George spoke with reporters in Lagos on the leadership logjam, Sheriff’s remarks about the Edo State PDP primary, Ekiti State Governor Ayodele Fayose’s battle with the anti-graft agency and the rift between the Senate and the Presidency.

    He chided Sheriff for making what he described an unguarded statement on the Edo primary, adding that he was trying to create an impression of crisis and division in his bid to deliberately deny the benefit of a governorship candidate in the Southsouth state.

    The former deputy chairman urged Sheriff to desist from what he described as “political lunacy and rascality”, adding that there is a subsisting legal directive that he should not parade himself as the chairman.

    George said: “Sheriff is an ex-PDP Acting Chairman. He should go home. He is barely two years old in the party and he does not know the party culture. He ceased to be the chairman at the convention. He was a chairmanship aspirant, who took the nomination form and appeared before the screening committee. You can’t be the midwife and the new born baby. The tenure of the NWC has ended.”

    Noting that the setting up of the Caretaker Committee headed by Senator Ahmed Makarfi was legal, the chieftain added: “There was a directive that there should be no election into the offices of the chairman, secretary and auditor. The convention is empowered to set up the caretaker committee. It was constitutionally set up and it has the right to organise a new convention.”

    George described the PDP as a formidable grassroots party with an incredible resilience, lamenting that the leadership crisis is diverting its attention and focus as a vibrant opposition party.

    He blamed the party leadership for not invoking the provision of the PDP constitution, which forbids members from taking the party to court when all avenues for the ventilation of grievances have not been fully explored.

    He said: “Those who took the party to court should have been fired. Sheriff cannot lead the party again. We will have new mangers.”

    George frowned at the activities of Prof. Wale Oladipo, Adeyanju and Buriji Kashamu, who are supporting Sheriff, recalling that the secretary and auditor became party officers because their rivals were asked to step down for them at the zonal congress.

    He added: “I expect the professor to have a deeper and more rational mind. If he is now taking orders from Buruji, his former students will not like it. Wale should not disgrace Yoruba. His children and grand children will read all these stories in the newspapers. I urge him to come back home honourably.”

    George lent his voice to the controversy triggered by the freezing of Fayose’s account, saying that the rule of law will prevail. He stressed: “Ayo is my son. he has his own style. Two wrongs cannot make a right. Let us follow the rule of law. He cannot be prosecuted because of Section 308 of the Constitution.”

    The retired Commodore said politicians are heating up the polity at a time poverty and hunger are ravaging Nigeria.

    George urged elder statesmen and former presidents to wade into the crisis between the Senate and President Muhammadu Buhari in the interest of democracy.

    He said: “There are three arms of government and if one arm is wobbling, there will be instability. “