The crisis rocking the Ogun State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has taken a new dimension. A faction has objected to the dissolution of the state executive and the installation of a caretaker committee by the National Caretaker Committee. Assistant Editor LEKE SALAUDEEN examines the crisis and why it has defied solution.
The dissolution of the Executive Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Ogun State Chapter, has rekindled the rivalry between the former Governor Gbenga Daniel and Senator Buruji Kashamu from Ogun East District. The sacked Adebayo Dayo-led executive was installed by Kashamu, the sole financial of the chapter. To Kashamu the dissolution was meant to curtail his influence over the party and a grand design by the National Caretaker Committee (NCC) to hand over the party structure to Daniel.
To justify his claim, Kashamu said the membership of the caretaker committee appointed by the Senator Ahmed Makarfi led-NCC was one sided. He argued that the committee was packed with loyalists of Daniel and Adebutu with the exception of the Chairman and Secretary, who are from outside of the state. He described the NCC’s action as an affront on judiciary against the backdrop that Dayo and members of his executive had secured a court order that it must not be dissolved.
The Abuja Division of the Federal High Court in an August 11 order said the Ogun PDP executive, led by Kashamu’s associate, Dayo, should be recognised as a legitimate body by the PDP national executive. The court also ordered that Dayo’s committee be allowed to participate at the party’s non-elective convention held on August 12 in Abuja. But Kashamu and Dayo stayed away from the convention, having got the wind that the Ogun State PDP executive was among those to be dissolved at the convention.
The party has been torn between Kashamu and Daniel, who has the backing of Chief Kessington Adebutu, a businessman and a financier of the party. Daniel has accused Kashamu of masterminding an assassination attempt on his life and urged the police put him under surveillance. The former governor said five men who were heavily armed stormed his Abuja residence on August 24 in the night asking for him, but he had already left Abuja earlier in the day.
According to Daniel: “This renewed offensive was as a result of the recent Supreme Court ruling placing Kashamu’s faction at a disadvantage and ending his control over the State Executive Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party in Ogun State. It is Kashamu’s belief that I was the brain behind his loss of power and relevance in Ogun State PDP and he felt I must be brought down by all means”.
Denying the allegations, Kashamu wondered why he should go after a man who is at the twilight of his political career. He said OGD is afraid of his shadows. He is desperate to score cheap political point and seek relevance for his dimming political career. He has to raise the false alarm and pin it on someone who does not even care if he exists.
Analysts say the fight over the soul of the party is an extension of the crisis that engulfed the party prior to the 2011 general elections. Daniel was edged out of the PDP by Kashamu and took over the party structure, which ought to be under the former governor. He was forced to seek political relevance by floating a new party, the Peoples’ Party of Nigeria (PPN) for his supporters to contest 2011 general elections.
The crisis in Ogun PDP is legendary. It started when the former National Chairman of the PDP, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, appointed Kashamu as the Chairman of the Southwest Contact and Mobilisation Committee. Since then, the party has not been the same in the Southwest and Ogun State in particular.
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo, under whose leadership the PDP rose to prominence in the Southwest, lost control over the party, even in Ogun, his home state. Supporters of Obasanjo considered Kashamu’s appointment as an imposition intended to spite the former President and reduce his political influence. The party structure, they said, was deliberately handed over to Kashamu to undermine Obasanjo, who vowed not to recognise a party leader that had been declared wanted in the United States for drug offences. Obasanjo and Kashamu clashed over the state party chairman. Senator Dipo Odujurin was Obasanjo’s candidate while Kashamu sponsored Adebayo Dayo. There was litigation over the winner of the contest. At last, the court declared Dayo as the authentic chairman. That was how Kashamu took over the party.
Ahead of the 2011 governorship election, Ogun PDP was split into two camps: the Mandate Group, led by Kashamu, and the Jubril Marti-Kuye (JMK) faction loyal to Obasanjo. The JMK was rooting for the former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Dimeji Bankole, to emerge as the governorship candidate. The group also called for the dissolution of the party’s executive in the state, which was installed by Kashamu.
The Mandate group warned that, if they foisted Bankole on the party and give him automatic ticket, there will be crisis. The Mandate group also reminded those behind “Dimeji Bankole Must Be Governor” campaign that it was the same Bankole, who lost his re-election bid for the Abeokuta South Constituency, which was made up of just only one local government.
Former President Goodluck Jonathan had endorsed Bankole as candidate. The development did not go down well with Kashamu. He advised Bankole to go through normal process to realise his ambition.
Another issue fuelling the crisis was the return of Daniel from the Labour Party (LP) to the PDP and his ambition to contest the Ogun East Senatorial election in 2019, the seat currently occupied by Kashamu. Besides, Daniel is the pillar behind Hon. Ladi Adebutu, the son of Chief Kessington, who is nursing governorship ambition in 2019. Kashamu believes it is an attempt to take away the party structure from him. He was quoted as saying: “You can’t reap from where you didn’t sew. I use my personal money to run PDP in Ogun State. Nobody can take it from me.”
A chieftain of the PDP and Chairman of Adebutu group, Alhaji Sikirulai Ogundele, blamed the division in the chapter on the selfish interest of Kashamu. Ogundele said: “We started having problems when Buruji Kashamu came up with a deceit that was supported by Daniel. We found out later that Kashamu was out to use our political fortunes to enrich his business interest through a diabolical organisation he called ‘Omo Ilu Foundation.’ He forced many members of the party to swear to an oath of allegiance to his leadership.
“He took the party leadership to court on certain issues. With the support of former President Olusegun Obasanjo he had his way. He used court injunctions to take over the party structure. Kashamu later frustrated Obasanjo, Daniel and other notable leaders out of the party. What Kashamu did to the PDP in Ogun was the height of deceit. In 2011, he started selling party tickets for political offices to the highest bidders. In 2015, we had the opportunity of regaining power in the state, but we could not utilise the opportunity because of the selfish interest of Kashamu. Like he did in 201, he fixed prices for elective offices. Those who could afford to pay were given the tickets. It was a cash and carry business.”
Kashamu has drawn a battle line with the NCC when he said: “With or without national recognition, the Adebayo Dayo-led executive stays. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) shall continue to deal with Dayo-led executive as stated in its 9th August , 2016 letter to the National Caretaker Committee. Whatever decision they took at the NEC and national convention is of no consequence whatsoever. It is dead on arrival. We are clearly miles ahead of them.
“It is surprising that that the National Caretaker Committee which is a product of the law could encourage illegality and impunity. The fact that they acted in defiance of two new subsisting court orders and judgments makes all decisions they took at the national convention illegal. If care is not taken, this could be exploited by the opposition at the last minute at a huge cost to the PDP and all those who would have invested in the process. Why would our party leaders take such a risk and contaminate the convention because of the vaunting ambitions of a few.”
Dayo described the setting up of the committee by the NCC as laughable, ridiculous and nullity. Faulting the dissolution of the Ogun PDP executive, Dayo said: “The congress that produced our executive was conducted under the supervision of the panel sent from the PDP national secretariat, Abuja with the INEC officials in attendance as observers. The congress was adjudged to have complied with the party’s constitution and followed the party’s rules and regulation on congress.
“It was on this basis that the National Caretaker Committee wrote a letter dated July 27, 2016 which was addressed to me on ‘Harmonisation of State PDP Executive’. The letter signed by the Secretary, National Caretaker Committee, Senator Ben Obi spelt out the sharing formula for representation at the state executive and nomination for local government election. It was categorically stated that in Central Senatorial District, Hon. Dimeji Bankole will take 50 per cent of the state executive council members and nominees for local government election. For Ikene, Remo North and Sagamu Federal Constituency, Hon. Ladi Adebutu will take 25 per cent of the state executive members and nominees for local government elections.
“I called a meeting to brief the two groups on this letter but they refused to honour my invitation. The NCC did the right thing through the sharing formula by including every group but the people concerned have refused to obey the party’s directive. Is it the fault of the state executive? They decided not to accept the olive branch extended to them; they should bear the brunt not the executive.”
A member of Kashamu group, Chief Ishola Ololade viewed the dissolution of the executive as “an attempt to frustrate us out of the party. Kashamu had fought many political battles and won including the antics of Obanjo and Daniel. We shall also crush this rebellion aimed at taking over the party’s structure through the back door.
“It is only when it is convenient that the party leaders obey court orders but where the court ruling threatens their interest they discountenance it. Kashamu will not leave the PDP for political harlots that keep changing political platform whenever election is approaching.”
Ogundele advised Kashamu to face the reality. He said: “The highest organ of the party has dissolved the state executive and had inaugurated a caretaker committee to organise state congress that would produce new state executive and national delegates ahead of December National Convention. Kashamu should stop flexing muscle over the former executive and prepare for the state congress. Adebayo Dayo-led executive has become history; no amount of threat, blackmail or court injunction will bring it back.” Analysts observe that the dissolution of the party’s executive has deepened the Ogun PDP crisis that the caretaker committee may not be able to resolve. The way out is for the caretaker committee to be neutral, open, transparent and create a level playing ground for all contending interests, if it must conduct a credible congress.
