The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Tukur

  • Five PDP governors step up anti-Jonathan, Tukur campaign

    Five PDP governors step up anti-Jonathan, Tukur campaign

    • Meet Ekwueme on PDP, Rivers crises, division in NGF

    Four of the G-5 Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governors, yesterday, took their save democracy campaign to Second Republic Vice-President, Dr. Alex Ekwueme.

    Governors Sule Lamido (Jigawa); Murtala Nyako (Adamawa); Rabiu Kwankwaso (Kano) and Aliyu Wammako (Sokoto) met Dr. Ekwueme for about 45 minutes in his suite at the NICON Luxury Hotel, Abuja.

    The fifth member of the group, Gov. Babangida Aliyu of Niger State, was said to be away in Saudi Arabia for the lesser Hajj (Umrah).

    Yesterday’s deliberation took place behind closed door with the governors seeking the Second Republic Vice President’s intervention in resolving some of the crises confronting the nation and the ruling PDP.

    The issues include the political crisis in Rivers State, the division in the Nigeria Governors Forum, degeneration of internal democracy in PDP; the need to reorganise PDP if it does not want to lose future elections; and the alleged intolerance of dissenting views by the Presidency.

    A highly-placed source, who spoke in confidence, said: “The 45-minute audience was part of the ongoing consultations with critical stakeholders by the five governors.

    “The choice of Ekwueme by the governors was strategic because he had presided over the only acceptable reconciliation committee in PDP. He is also respected for his quality advice.

    “By meeting with Ekwueme, the governors told the ex-VP that they were trying to demonstrate that their intervention was not sectional contrary to insinuations in some quarters.

    “They told the statesman that the crisis in Rivers State portends a great danger for the nation’s democracy. They pleaded with Ekwueme to meet with other statesmen of like minds to hold a meeting with the President and persuade him to accept some of the peace terms they had presented.”

    Responding to a question, the source added: “They expressed concern that the vision of the founding fathers of PDP, including Ekwueme, to have a truly democratic and detribalised party was being derailed.

    “They insisted that the PDP must be reorganised if it does not want to lose power in 2015. They alleged that the party is losing touch with Nigerians.”

    Ekwueme was said to have assured his guests that he and other leaders already visited by the governors would look at the issues raised by them.

    “I have noted the issues you have raised, I can assure you that all the leaders you have consulted will address these matters,” he was quoted as saying.

    On the achievements of the shuttles by the governors so far, the source added: “They have succeeded in pointing out to elders that the nation’s democracy is under threat.

    “As stakeholders, the five governors have privileged information that most Nigerians are not aware of. I think a stitch in time saves nine.”

    It was also gathered yesterday that the five governors may meet former military Head of State, Gen. Yakubu Gowon, after the Eid-el Fitri festival.

    Another source, who is part of the ongoing consultations by the governors, said: “I think they will meet Gowon after Sallah next week.”

    The governors had first gone to Port Harcourt last month on a solidarity visit to the Chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF), Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, on his travails with the PDP, the Presidency and the State Police Command before going to Abeokuta on Saturday, July 20 to seek the intervention of former President Olusegun Obasanjo.

    Incidentally, President Goodluck Jonathan, with whom they are not on the best of terms was also in Abeokuta that day partly to see Chief Obasanjo but the governors deliberately avoided contact with him by diverting their convoy elsewhere in town until the President departed Obasanjo’s residence.

    Thereafter, the governors met with former Nigerian leaders-General Ibrahim Babangida and General Abdulsalami Abubakar in Minna; President Jonathan in Abuja penultimate Saturday and later with Second Republic President Shehu Shagari in Sokoto.

  • 2015: Jonathan to stick with Tukur

    2015: Jonathan to stick with Tukur

    •Rainbow coalition imminent

    •Shuns PDP governors’ demand for chair’s removal

    •12 Govs shop for new party

    President Goodluck Jonathan is not prepared to sacrifice the National Chairman of the PDP, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, as a condition for peace with some governors elected on the platform of the party, it can now be revealed.

    At least five of the governors-Sule Lamido (Jigawa), Murtala Nyako (Adamawa),Rabiu Kwankwaso (Kano),Aliyu Wammako (Sokoto) and Babangida Aliyu (Niger)- have launched a Tukur-Must-Go campaign for the President to continue to enjoy their backing.

    But following their meeting with the President penultimate Saturday, it appears he is unmoved by the campaign.

    The governors and some other PDP stakeholders accuse Tukur of running the party as a private company and warn that the situation is alienating many party members who are now itching to jump ship.

    It was gathered yesterday that as many as 12 governors elected on the PDP platform are already shopping for an alternative party ahead of the 2015 election.

    They are also considering a collaboration with the newly registered All Progressives Congress (APC) during the 2015 poll to ease out President Jonathan under what a source described as a “rainbow coalition.”

    Sources said yesterday that in spite of last week’s reconciliatory meeting between the President and five PDP governors, there was no commitment on the part of the President that he may concede to the removal of Tukur.

    It was gathered that when the five governors briefed their colleagues on the meeting, including those who are pro-Jonathan, they alleged that the body language of the President was not too “committal”.

    Regardless of the present stalemate, the five governors are said to have opted to continue with their ongoing consultations to save PDP from collapse until stakeholders reach a brick wall.

    Their Plan B is to move to a neutral party where each of them could prove a point that they could deliver their state.

    But they may also team up with the APC in a rainbow coalition that may agree on a consensus presidential candidate against Jonathan whose determination to secure PDP presidential ticket for 2015 poll is a fait accompli.

    A governor, who confided in our correspondent, said: “At least 12 out of the 23 PDP governors may opt out of the party for a new party in 2015 to protect our political interests.

    “The trend in PDP is that the President and his strategists are trying to hijack party machinery from the governors so that they will not have a say on the party’s candidates for 2015 elections at the state level. They want to dictate everything from Abuja.

    “Since our political strength is underrated, we have to ply our trade in a new party and deliver our states. “By the time PDP loses the 2015 poll, we can return to the party from our new political abode to reorganise it.

    “Some of us are also being tactical in not moving to APC because of the political configuration and ethno-religious temperament of our states.

    “But during the presidential elections, we will work with APC for a joint candidate that we feel could lead Nigeria from 2015. The ultimate challenge before all parties is to effect a change, at least for once, to provide the nation an alternative in 2015. It is this reality that our party does not want to happen. But we cannot continue with business as usual.”

    Responding to a question, the source added: “This is the main plan of some aggrieved governors now, we hope PDP leaders will intervene and put the party back on course. If the prevalent situation persists, a rainbow coalition is imminent to dislodge PDP from power.

    “The details of the coalition are being worked out by some governors, ex-governors, aggrieved PDP leaders and other like minds.”

  • Jonathan, Tukur and the PDP house

    Jonathan, Tukur and the PDP house

    To Karl Meier, the house has fallen. In his celebrated work, the German contended that Nigeria exists only in name, but, to all intent and purpose, it had long ceased to exist as a state. In other words, it is a failed state. This is contentious. I do not subscribe to Meier’s view. I believe Nigeria does not fall in the category of Somalia. A lot is wrong; very few Nigerians see themselves first as Nigerians before being Yoruba or Igbo. Many Northerners would readily associate more with Nigeriens and Chadians that they would their countrymen and women.

    But, there is hope. I believe that Nigeria will survive the current turbulence. The state will not fail, despite the activities of vampires and dealers who have seized the edifice.

    In the past few weeks, the actions and inactions of leaders of the ruling national party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has given the impression that the country is at a precipice. People expected to show the direction have abandoned the way and headed for the forest. It is bemusing that, a party concerned about internal crisis chose to employ the services of a partisan to reconcile warring factions. Seriake Dickson, imposed as governor of Bayelsa State by President Goodluck Jonathan, is made chairman of a panel to resolve a crisis threatening the peace of the party.

    The arrowheads of the charge in the Niger Delta are Akwa Ibom State Governor Godswill Akpabio and Dickson. They are men who have apparently sworn to defend whatever they perceive to be the President’s interest. When Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi is perceived an enemy, Dickson and Akpabio are instructed to provoke crisis in his territory. They are the men charged with ensuring that only loyalists of the President are in the Central Working Committee. How then could any strategist deem Dickson fit to pretending to mediate a crisis?

    Another body, charged with the duty of organizing a convention meant to fill the yawning gaps in the party’s leadership is headed by Professor Jerry Gana. Gana who has been a constant factor in every regime and administration, sees nothing wrong with the powers that be. In recent times, he has led some Northerners on a tour to drum support for the President. On his committee is another Any Government in Power (AGIP), former Deputy Senate President Ibrahim Mantu. Saddling these men with these all important tasks is like appointing Patience Jonathan to probe Amaechi. This is obvious to all and is an indication that Alhaji Bamanga Tukur lacks what it takes to play any major role in the country.

    When he was ostensibly elected national chairman of the dominant political party in the country, the choice was criticized by the patriotic media on the ground that he was too old for the assignment. This was more so because, at 76, he was deemed too old to be swimming in troubled waters. His supporters dismissed the disparagement, arguing that an elder was needed at such a time. He was presented as a man of experience, one who had managed the Nigerian Ports Authority, was a governor in the Second Republic and had served as President of the Africa Roundtable for years.

    However, the manner of his emergence gave cause for concern. He was rejected at the zonal level and lacks a base in his Adamawa home front. Yet, he was imposed on the party by the President who knew the use to which he could put the septuagenarian. Under Tukur’s watch, the PDP has continued to sink. It has no control of governors elected on its platform, its image has been soiled perhaps beyond redemption and every member is on its own.

    If the possible consequence of this ineptitude were limited to a controlled implosion of the ruling party, there would be little cause for concern. But, as the largest party in the country today, one that controls 23 states and has support in at least two others, a conflagration of the PDP could consume the country, especially in the drive towards 2015.

    On the one hand, an implosion of the PDP would serve the country well as it would weaken its vice grip on the country; on the other, an implosion when the country is in the hands of men desperate to retain power at all cost could bring to pass the Americans’ prediction that Nigeria could join the growing list of failed states very soon.

    Meier contends that the house has fallen. He looked at the various sectors- social, economic, political- and concluded that the country lacks the factors needed to pull it back from the precipice. It behooves us all to prove Meier wrong by ensuring that only capable leaders run affairs of the country and the political parties.

  • PDP in battle to avoid rancorous convention

    PDP in battle to avoid rancorous convention

    The special national convention of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)  will take place next month in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). Assistant Editor LEKE SALAUDEEN writes on the controversy surrounding the convention.

    Will the special national convention of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) achieve the desired objective? Will the convention committee abide by the guidelines? Is it possible to resolve the internal crises before the convention? To observers, these questions must be addressed, if the PDP plans to conduct a credible convention.

    Analysts contend that the proposed convention is a formality because virtually all the members of the National Working Committee (NWC) who resigned their positions last month are likely to return.

    This is evident by the statement of the Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, who is the the convention committee Secretary. He said the zones and the states where the previous members that resigned came from would fill the slots.

    “We are going to keep all the positions within the zones. If there is any strong reason for us to change a particular candidate, that will happen. But for now, we are going to keep all the positions in the zones that keep them presently. We are not changing the zoning formula; we are reopening nominations. This is a new convention. They will pay; it is not the old convention.”

    The implication of Ekweremadu’s explanation is that the office of the National Publicity Secretary is retained in Anambra State. Imo State will produce the National Woman Leader. The office of the National Legal Adviser is retained in Plateau state; the National Treasurer will come from Kebbi State, Rivers state will still produce Deputy National Chairman. The National Organising Secretary is retained in Kaduna state while Ebonyi state will still produce the Deputy National Secretary.

     Why special convention?

     The election of some national officers, which was held in March, last year, was faulted by INEC a year after. INEC clearly stated that the mode of election of some of the members of the National Working Committee (NWC) was not acceptable. INEC, in its report signed by Col M. K. Hammanga (rtd), the team leader to the PDP national convention held on March 24, 2012, at Eagle Square, Abuja, said the the election was faulty.

    “The mode of election adopted for single candidates was not in accordance with that stipulated in paragraph 6.5 (i) of the guidelines for the conduct of the 2012 congresses and national convention and therefore, not acceptable to the Commission, the report stated.

    Consequently, the elections of the following officers were voided: The Deputy National Chaairman, Dr Sam Sam Jaja; National Organising Secretary, Abubakar Mustapha; National Youth Leader, Alhaji Garba Chiza; Deputy National Youth Leader, Dennis Alonge Niyi; National Auditor, Senator Umar Ibrahim; Deputy National Woman Leader, Hanatu Ulam; National Woman Leader. Kema Chikwe; Deputy National Organising Secretary, Okechukwu Nnadozie; Deputy National Treasurer Claudius Inengas; National Legal Adviser , Victor Kwom; National Publicity Secretary, Olisa Methu and the Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Binta Goje.

    INEC declared their elections improper despite the fact that these single candidates were duly nominated and their candidature ratified by a majority voice vote at the convention.

    The commission also noted that the open secret ballot system was adopted for the election into the offices of the national Chairman , Auditor, Financial Secretary, Treasurer and Deputy Treasurer, in accordance with paragraph 6.5 (I) of the guidelines. It stated that all other positions had single candidates and were affirmed by motions, except for National Chairman, which was put to vote by open secret ballot, despite the fact that only one candidate was in contention.

    INEC also pointed out that the elections to the PDP congresses were not properly conducted in some states. A letter signed by INEC Secretary Abdullahi Kaugama, listed the affected states as Sokoto, Adamawa, Taraba, Plateau, Nasarawa, Jigawa, Lagos, Anambra and Katisna.

     Special convention guidelines

     To avoid INEC sledge hammer, the Chairman of the Special Convention Planning Committee, Prof. Jerry Gana, said the election is open to all the qualified members of the party.

    According to the new convention guidelines released by the committee, all the delegates that took part in the March 24, 2012 national convention are expected to attend the special convention. The process shall be by secret ballot where the candidate is unopposed by voice vote. In the event of tie, a run- off election shall be immediately conducted between the candidates with the highest equal number of votes.

    The guidelines further stated: “Election of zonal officers shall recognise the principles of zoning and spread of the party and public offices. Each candidate seeking election must be nominated by 20 registered members from the two-thirds of the states in the zone. Election shall be by simple majority to produce the officers of the zone.

    “Election of national officers shall recognise the principle of zoning and be conducted on the basis of existing zoning formula as amended by the National Executive Committee of the party. Each candidate shall be nominated by at least 20 registered members, five of whom must come from the aspirant’s zone.”

    The guideline emphasised that all the members seeking elections into the various offices must be registered members for, at least, two years.

     Tukur/Gana feud

     From all indications, the party is going for the convention as a divided fold. The acrimony that majority of the stakeholders may carry to the convention portends danger. The special convention was heading for the rock last week when the National Working Committee announced the suspension of the convention. Tukur and other members of the NWC directed the Convention Committee headed by Prof. Jerry Gana to suspend all the actions on the convention, which was earlier fixed for August 31.

    However, the suspension did not go down well with the committee as its members including the Secretary, Senator Ekweremadu, were said to have reported the matter to President Goodluck Jonathan . The President invited Tukur for a meeting where convention was discussed. The President’s intervention has led to a ceasefire in the battle of wits between the Tukur-led NWC and the Convention committee. Already, the President has directed that the convention date as announced by the convention committee be retained.

    A presidential source, who was at the meeting, said the deal the President had with both Tukur and Gana was that the Special National Convention will still hold on August 31 and the Southwest congress will also take place on August 24. To appease the angry NWC members, the President, according to the source, directed that the Gana committee should allow the members of the NWC to chair some of the sub-committees in the convention committee.

    The source said the NWC members were not happy that the headship of the sub-committees, including the Publicity, which was supposed be reserved for the National Publicity Secretary, was given to another person by the Gana committee. The NWC also complained that the National Organising Secretary was not even mentioned as the chairman of any committee, while the Woman Leader, who is the traditional person in charge of welfare, was merely made a member of the welfare committee.

    Whether the peace brokered between Tukur and Gana by the Presidency will endure or not, time will tell.

     Crises tearing PDP apart

     There is no geo-political zone where the PDP is crisis-free. The Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF) crisis that has polarised the governors into pro-Amaechi and Jang supporters, an attempt by the Presidency to destabilise Northern Governors Forum and the lingering Rivers crisis that has pitched Governor Rotimi Amaechi against President Jonathan and his wife.

    The party is bitterly factionalised in the Southwest. In Ogun State, PDP is divided alongside many factions. There is a faction loyal to former President Olusegun Obasanjo. The Buruji Kashamu group is in control of party machinery in the state. The recommendation of the reconciliation committee set up by the national secretariat of the party that the state executive be shared between the two groups was rejected by the Kashamu group. The Obasajo group has lost out completely in the struggle for the soul of the party. The battle of supremacy consumed Chief Bode Mustapha as the National Auditor of the party. He was replaced by Adeyanju Olawale from Kashamu group.

    The Southwest zone held a special congress recently in Ibadan to nominate a replacement for Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, the erstwhile national secretary, whose appointment was nullified by the court on the ground that the congress that produced him was illegal. According to a release issued after the meeting, the delegates unanimously approved the nomination of Professor Wale Oladipo as the Acting National Secretary. The position was zoned to Osun state and Oladipo hails from Osun.

    Forty eight hours after the announcement, a group, the Osun PDP Concerned forum kicked against Oladipo’s nomination. In an advertorial signed by the representatives from the 30 local governments in the state, the forum stated that the said selection and the mode of the selection did not conform with the constitution of the PDP and does not enjoy the support and goodwill of the majority. Rather than deepen peace and unity the announcement has stirred disunity disenchantment and mutual suspicion, the statement added.

    But the Chairman of Ogun State chapter, Chief Bayo Dayo, who attended the zonal congress, told The Nation that the selection of Prof. Oladipo was open and transparent. According to him, there were two candidates. The other candidate stepped down for Oladipo to emerge as the unanimous candidate.

     Stalled reconciliation

     Ekiti State PDP was embroiled in a fresh crisis last week, following the suspension of the party chairman, Chief Makanjuola Ogundipe, by a faction loyal to former Governor Ayo Fayose. There was commotion at the party secretariat in Ado-Ekiti when some aggrieved members met and announced the suspension of the chairman. Ogundipe was accused of misappropriation of funds, corruption, and failure to carry along members of the Central Working Committee. He was also accused of constituting unilaterally the screening committee to pick the governorship candidate for the next year governorship election. The Ogundipe group has also suspended Fayose and some officers. Already, the party is balkanised into splinter groups loyal to various chieftains, including the former governor, Mr Segun Oni, Fayose, and the Minister of Police Affairs, Navy Captain Caleb Olubolade (rtd). All efforts to reconcile the factions by the national leadership have failed.

    A chieftain of the party, Prince Dayo Adeyeye, admitted that there was crisis in the chapter which according to him, is not peculiar to PDP. He told our correspondent that, in a big party like PDP, the likelihood of disagreement on issues is possible. Adeyeye said Ogundipe, is still the chairman. An individual cannot on his volition suspend the chairman. There is a procedure to follow, he added.

    Lagos is also not insulated from the crisis as some chieftains of the party have approached the Federal High Court seeking an order to disqualify the former chairman of the party in the Southwest, Chief Bode George, as a member of the Board of Trustees. The plaintiffs, Alhaji Badmus Agboola and Dauda Atomoh, contend that George, having been convicted in 2009, is not qualified to hold office. The suit was filed on the heels of purported reconciliation between George and Senator Adeseye Ogunlewe, a PDP chieftain and a challenger to George’s leadership.

    Ondo State chapter is also not at peace with itself. The elders of the party are not in good terms with the governorship, candidate in last governorship election, Chief Olusola Oke, who is also the former National Legal Adviser of the party. The elders were alleged to have shifted allegiance to the Labour party, thereby ensuring Governor Olusegun Mimiko’s re-election.

  • PDP convention: Tukur, Gana mend fences

    PDP convention: Tukur, Gana mend fences

    •Party gets 30-man reconciliation panel

    The crisis of confidence between the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Bamanga Tukur and chairman of the party’s Special Convention Committee, Prof Jerry Gana appeared to have been resolved.

    The Tukur-led National Working Committee (NWC) held a meeting with the Gana committee at the party’s secretariat yesterday where the two parties agreed to reschedule the convention earlier fixed for August 31 by the Gana committee. The meeting was held at the instance of President Goodluck Jonathan.

    The convention date had been changed on two occasions. New dates for the national convention and the Southwest congress are expected to be announced at an expanded meeting of the party’s leadership tomorrow

    Tukur had, in the heat of the disagreement last week, announced the suspension of the Gana committee’s programme, a development that necessitated Jonathan’s intervention .

    Speaking with reporters after the meeting, Tukur said the issues affecting the conduct of the forthcoming convention had been ironed out and disagreements over the matter resolved.

    Gana corroborated Tukur’s position, saying that the leaders had agreed to sink their differences and move ahead in the overall interest of the party.

    At the meeting were Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu, who is the secretary of the Gana committee; Akwa Ibom State Governor Godswill Akpabio, who is the committee’s deputy chairman; and a former chairman of the PDP, Dr. Haliru Bello Mohammed.

    Meanwhile, the PDP has set up a 30-man committee to reconcile aggrieved interests within the party nationwide.

    A statement by the Acting National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Tony Okeke said the committee, which is chaired by Governor Seriake Dickson of Byelsa State will be inaugurated on Thursday.

     

  • The reign of the Kakistocrats

    The reign of the Kakistocrats

    They are prisoners of power Trapped in its glistening prism of time and space They are shackled in its golden chains and gilded bracelets Oh how they serve term…

    It will not be necessary to go into the labour of defining kakistocracy since examples and illustrations abound to make the meaning plain. This idea had been tugging at me for some time but was finally triggered by a report in the newspapers last Sunday. It is titled: “Anenih, Tukur’s feud deepens.” The report is a narrative of the endless dog-fights in the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) hierarchy. It details how the lingering bad blood running between Chief Tony Anenih, chairman of the party’s Board of Trustees (BoT) and Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, chairman of the party. Professor Jerry Gana and Chief Ike Ekweremadu who were planning the convention of the party had gone to the chairman’s house for consultation. The chairman, Tukur was said to have shut them out, making them wait outside the gate of his palatial Abuja residence for over half an hour before they made an about turn, wooden-footed and cloudy faced.

    Party chairman, Tukur had rebuffed and rubbed dust on these who are no mean party members because they had been sent by BoT chairman, Anenih who deigns to control and fix the affairs of the party even though he occupies a mere ceremonial position. This mild drama happened late last week. By early this week, the entire Gana convention planning committee had been thrown in the dustbin for some woolly reason. But at the bottom of it all is power struggle. The PDP has been unable to hold a convention for some years neither has it been able to elect proper officers and committees. The ruling party is today, akin to a grounded aircraft that has been converted to an excursion site: though the engine hums and revs, it is incapable of lifting off the ground.

    This is vintage kakistocracy starkly illustrated. Kakistocracy is the reign of humdrum: humdrum people, humdrum party, humdrum government translating to a humdrum country. Kakistocracy is to be led by vacuous people who have lost touch with reality and have been too far disconnected from the people they lead that they are incapable of applying the reverse gear. Chief Emeka Anyaoku laid it bare only last Sunday. Giving a talk in Lagos, the eminent diplomat said the country is facing a crisis while our leaders and elite are living in denial of those facts. Dear readers, since we have known the likes of Anenih, Tukur, Gana, and co., did we ever know them for any public good, monumental performance in public service, social contract, national pride, flag and country? Ladies and gentlemen, has it not always been about vacancy in Aso Rock, juicy ministerial appointments, Nigerian Ports Authority, big contracts and political bickering? This is kakistocracy in practice.

    Kakistocracy is the very obtuse action of a president heaving plane loads of his cabinet members, governors and hangers-on (you may call them businessmen) across continents and oceans on a supposed state visit to China. The last time such a crowd was on a state visit anywhere was when the Queen of Sheba visited king Solomon: “She came to Jerusalem with a very great retinue, with camels that bore spices, very much gold and precious stones;…” (1Kings 10 v.2 NKJV). That junket to China last week is perhaps the worst thing that has happened to the dignity and esteem of Nigeria since independence.

    Weight for weight, China does not have more resources than Nigeria and in fact, we have not tapped nary ten percent of our natural resources while our intellectual wealth is yet to be scratched. All the loans and grants from China we sing about, is just a small fraction of Nigeria’s one month oil earning or a small portion of losses to oil theft of about 400,000 barrels per day. Leveraging on this quantum of earnings, there is no amount the Chinese would give us that we can not muster ten times over. Indeed under a smart leadership, Nigeria ought to be lending money to China with a population of about 1.5 billion people. Nigeria under President Goodluck Jonathan is the only country in the world that cannot safeguard its strategic national assets. Since miscreants and petty rogues steal our oil and we don’t know what to do, we may consider drafting the Chinese navy.

    Kakistocracy is morbid politics of power for the sake of it. While the Chinese we love to visit acquire power for the sake of country, for the people, for building lasting monuments, and with the aim to transform their country to showpieces other nationals would marvel at, we hunt down power for the sake of it. We chase power to loot the treasury and cart away to China, South Africa and Switzerland. We grab power to destroy our institutions so that we can be tin gods.

    Kakistocracy is the presidency subverting order and the rule of law by supporting a renegade faction in a governors’ forum election; it is the torpedoing of the constitution and the impunity of hirelings trying to upstage a State House of Assembly by force. Kakistocracy is the presidency’s refusal to condemn the rampaging renegades who have brought the Rivers Assembly to a state of ferment and the entire state to a stand-still.

    Kakistocracy, to paraphrase Prof.Pat Utomi, is the prevalence in government, of people lacking in quality and capacity to govern; it is a place where there are no elders, where the elders have been compromised with contracts and appointments and all such gravy. Kakistocracy is leadership by the worst people in the land.

    LAST MUG: No Sam, it’s time to act: Dr. Sam Amadi’s piece, “It’s Time to Think,” on the back page of Thisday newspaper, July 12, 2013, is brilliant in espousing the current dangerous mindset of the people ruling Nigeria today. By the way, Amadi is the chairman of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Committee (NERC). While one would forgive him for suggesting that Nigerians are empty and unthinking (which according to him, explains the current inertia in our national life), what is his NERC thinking in relentlessly increasing electricity tariff in the face of endless darkness? My brother I think NERC should do some work and … yes, think less.

    GEN. ALABI-ISAMA’S BIAFRA: Numerous readers of this column who have inundated me with enquiries as to how to get a copy of GEN. ALABI-ISAMA’S BOOK, “TRAGEDY OF HISTORY” reviewed on this page last week, may call the following number for copies of the book: 0811-513-1881

  • Stop fighting Tukur tells Rivers lawmakers

    Stop fighting Tukur tells Rivers lawmakers

    •Blame Mbu, says NBA

    The National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Bamanga Tukur, has urged warring parties in Rivers State to sheathe their swords.

    Making the call in a statement by his media aide, Oliver Okpala, the chairman dismissed widespread reports that the party leadership fanned the crisis.

    Calling for sanity in the state Assembly, Tukur said it is the desire of the PDP that peace and sanity return to the state, adding that democracy cannot thrive in an atmosphere of violence and anarchy.

    He urged the lawmakers to avoid overheating the polity, saying the PDP remained a united political family and that no true member would like to pull down the family’s political structure and existence.

    The chairman further warned that a threat to peace in any part of the country is a threat to the peace and stability of the country.

    He appealed to Nigerians to join hands in ensuring that peace returns to the state.

    Tukur assured party members of openness and transparency in both the coming national convention and Southwest congress, the dates for which have become a subject of controversy.

    “The leadership of the party will take practical steps to ensure that the forthcoming convention and congresses of the party will be an epitome of transparent and credible elections, in line with the party’s avowed creed for internal democracy.

    “The leadership of the party will not have any hand in deciding who wins at the congresses or the special national convention, since it is going to be transparent, free, credible and fair.

    “Any candidate who wins must have done so on his or her own merit, performance and service to the party.

    “Those to be members of the new National Working Committee will emerge from due process and will be those the delegates will choose at the congresses and the special convention.

    “The national chairman or the leadership have no special or anointed candidate for any position,” the statement added.

    The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Port Harcourt Branch, has stated that the Commissioner of Police, Mbu Joseph Mbu, should be blamed for the deepening crisis in the state.

    NBA, through the branch Chairman, Lawrence Oko-Jaja, yesterday urged the people to embrace peace, rather than allowing Rivers to gradually slide towards anarchy and lawlessness.

    A non-partisan pressure group, Ekere Ikwerre, also admonished politicians to shun violence and resolve their differences amicably, in the interest of the state.

    The lawyers said: “The force, brigandage and thuggery in an attempt by five lawmakers to dislodge the leadership of the House, which turned to a macabre theatre of war, will continue to jolt the psyche of the people for a long time.

    “The disgraceful and regrettable incident would not have occurred, if the police were alive to their responsibilities of protecting life and property.”

  • Anenih, Tukur’s feud deepens

    Anenih, Tukur’s feud deepens

    The relationship between the embattled National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Bamanga Tukur and the Chairman of the party’s Board of Trustees (BoT),Chief Tony Anenih has hit an all time low after Tukur allegedly shut the gate of his Abuja residence against a party delegation from him, last Thursday.

    Those allegedly denied entry by Tukur were members of the party’s National Convention Planning Committee led by its chairman, Prof Jerry Gana and the Secretary, Senator Ike Ekweremadu.

    They were on a mission for consultation with the PDP national Chairman on the preparation for the August 31 special national convention of the party.

    They were reportedly kept outside the gate by security men who told them that Tukur was not at home and that they could not enter the chairman’s expansive premises.

    Gana, at a press conference in Abuja on Friday, neither confirmed nor denied the report, saying that as party leaders, they were not expected to be discussing party issues on the pages of newspapers.

    “It’s true that the Deputy President of the Senate and I went to the chairman’s house to see him. But we will not take issues on that because we respect our party chairman. We are not going to discuss our party issues on the pages of newspapers”, Gana said while addressing reporters on preparation for the convention.

    Party sources said Anenih has not taken kindly to what he perceives as a personal insult on him by Tukur .

    A party source said:”The leader is angry and he may have decided to back the convention committee against Tukur following the latter’s refusal to give peace a chance. Anenih is very angry at the way the chairman treated respected chieftains of our party.

    “He is not happy that in spite of his intervention, Tukur is not ready for peace. Should the issue be discussed at the next BoT meeting, it is likely Anenih will throw his weight behind the convention committee. He was the one who advised them to go to Tukur. He is not happy that they were humiliated that much by the party’s leader.”

    Relationship between the two chairmen has not been particularly rosy on account of what many party members, including PDP governors, see as Tukur’s arrogance.

    Some of the governors are crusading for his removal, citing his style of management.

    Investigations by The Nation revealed that following a prolonged disagreement between the committee and the party’s interim National Working Committee over modalities for the planned convention, the BoT chairman was prevailed upon by some party chieftains to intervene in the matter for peace to reign.

    Consequently, Anenih met with the committee on the issue following which he spoke with Tukur and urged him to work with the Convention committee in the interest of the party.

    A member of the committee said: “Tukur wants the committee to be reporting to him as the national chairman of the party. But as members of the committee, we feel he should not be allowed to be an umpire in a game wherein he is a key player.

    “Though we are not holding election for his post, we are conducting elections to fill vacant positions in the NWC of which he is a part.

    “So the committee feels he shouldn’t be the one dictating the modalities. That is the issue. And because we have not been able to make him see reason with us, things are not going well between the committee and the interim NWC. This has the possibility of affecting the planned convention. That is why the BoT had to intervene.”

    Tukur, on his part, is also said to be peeved by the arrogance of the committee leadership.

    A party source familiar with the development said: “The chairman feels leaders of the committee are going outside their brief. The refusal of the committee to constantly report its activities to him annoys him. He cannot understand why Gana and his members will appoint sub-committees to handle aspects of the convention without telling him.

    “That is why the NWC feels the committee is deliberately sidelining it in the preparation for the convention. That explains the no-love-lost situation between the two party organs.”

    It was gathered that as a way of dousing the tension between the two camps, Anenih convinced the Gana-led committee to visit Tukur and discuss the planned convention with him.

    Gana and Ekweremadu reportedly arrived Tukur’s residence as early as 9.30am only to be denied entry.

    After waiting for about 35 minutes without seeing Tukur, they decided to leave.

    Sources said soon after their departure, Tukur held a meeting in his house with members of the party’s interim national Working Committee (NWC).

    The meeting lasted for about an hour after which the party chairman left for the Abuja Airport en route Yola, Adamawa State.

  • Tukur to Lamido:you must work for PDP presidential candidate

    Tukur to Lamido:you must work for PDP presidential candidate

    The National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Bamanga Tukur yesterday declared that Governor Sule Lamido of Jigawa State would have no choice than to work for the party’s presidential candidate in the 2015 election.

    Tukur was reacting to a report credited to Lamido in which the

    Governor was quoted to have said that getting the party’s presidential ticket would not guarantee the re-election of President Goodluck Jonathan in 2015.

    Tukur spoke in Abuja.

    He warned the governor against utterances that could heat up the system, adding that nobody should distract the President from his job.

    Tukur reminded Lamido that accredited delegates would decide who gets the party’s ticket, stressing that the people will decide who becomes president through their votes.

    He cautioned Lamido against overheating the system. The governor at the weekend said Jonathan would have to win the 2015 presidential election to make his second term ambition a reality, irrespective of the posturing by his supporters who were threatening other aspirants over his re-election.

    Tukur, who spoke through his Special Assistant, Media, Oliver Okpala, said: “It is wrong for anyone to start insinuating whether President Jonathan will emerge victorious as the presidential candidate of the PDP, “When the time for the presidential primaries is yet to come.

    As at today, the PDP is yet to conduct its presidential primary, let alone someone emerging as the presidential candidate.

    “Governor Lamido, if he is a true party man should know that he has no alternative than to support whosoever emerge as the party’s presidential candidate.

    “The emergence of the PDP presidential candidate will be decided by the delegates to the presidential primaries, thereafter, the party’s presidential candidate will face the electorate to decide who becomes the president. Not until that is done, PDP as a political party will be working to ensure that the- would be presidential candidate wins the presidential election.”

     

     

     

     

     

  • Tukur and principle of internal democracy in PDP

    Tukur and principle of internal democracy in PDP

    There comes a time in the life of a leader, when he should be assessed. So many facts show that the likes of Alhaji (Dr.) Bamanga Tukur, the National Chairman of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) are vanishing and veritably scarce in Nigeria’s political horizon and hemisphere.

    My knowledge of Dr Tukur is the he is a man who is always habouring thoughts on Nigeria and how to move the nation forward and make her assume her rightful place in the community of industrialised and developed nations.

    Whether in government or out it, Tukur’s contributions to the advancement of Nigeria have been outstanding.

    It is to his credit that his party men and women found him worthy in character, learning and disposition to elect him as the National Chairma of PDP. At a time when the party was in dire need of a servant leader, a unifying force and a rallying point, Tukur was found to be a worthy and dependable figure to occupy the position.

    Since then, he has not disappointed his admirers and supporters across the country and within the PDP. He came to Wadata House at a time when the party needed a man of strong character, wide experience and someone who does not only command respect but has a commanding presence to pick the bits and pieces of the party together and reposition it. What has happened in the party since then testify that he is a strong political force, capable of challenges in elections at any point in time and winning votes from the electorates with ease.

    Perhaps one of Tukur’s greatest assets is his humility even in the face of monumental successes and achievements. Unlike others, who could be swayed by their personal achievements and who may thereby become arrogant, Alhaji Bamanga is a complete gentleman, an amiable, disciplined and refined gentleman who cannot hurt a fly.

    A good mixer and a political strategist of outstanding proportion, Alhaji Bamanga is a blessing to the PDP, a gift to the Nigerian political class and a divine favour to Nigeria. There are very few Bamanga Tukurs out there.

    This is why Dr. Bamanga ought to be appreciated, if not celebrated. He was a founding member of the PDP. He was one of those who believed that the military has no part or portion in governance. With people of like-minds, the PDP was midwifed. Today, the party, now under the chairmanship and leadership of Tukur, sits atop the federal government and majority of the state governments all over the federation.

    This is replicated in the local government areas across the country. It is to the credit of Tukur and the political colossus known as the PDP that republicanism and democracy have continued to flourish in the country and enliven the hopes and aspirations of the citizenry.

    The wisemen whose idea gave birth to the PDP are those who should be given kudos for our present democracy. They are the great men of vision, mission and wisdom, who saw tomorrow and envisioned how to make it better for the masses of this country. Dr. Tukur was among the wisemen. A man of peace and patience, Tukur has given the PDP a distinctive feature of character and discipline since he took over the reins in the party.

    The man, Tukur, cannot be celebrated without articulating his proactive activities and programmes as the National Chairman of the PDP. He has brought unity to the PDP. He also brought discipline and a sense of purpose to the organisation.

    He has united the executive, legislature and the judiciary. The various organs of the party have been strengthened. The principles of internal democracy have been put into action and effects. Party members are now more united than ever before. His tour of the states helped to rekindle hope in the party’s faithfuls across the country.

    The PDP has become a stronger political force and organisation under the leadership of Alhaji Bamanga. The PDP has remained the party to beat in any election. Whilst the opposition continued to gang up and/or align forces, the PDP has continued to stay afloat politically. It has continued to expand her network.

    That the opposition ever thought of coming together is because they appreciate the home truth they cannot stand the PDP in any contest individually. Even as they have purported to come together, the PDP under Tukur will dwarf all of them put together and prevail over them.

    Mention must be made of Alhaji Tukur’s leadership style. It is a style devoid of autocracy and dictatorship. A natural democrat, Dr. Bamanga is not one to wield the big stick. He relishes dialogue and listens to opposing views. Any wonder, then, that he has so effortlessly carried everybody along in his party. His avuncular and father-figure mien and attitude are some of his solid attributes and qualities which have endeared him to his party men and women and to the generality of Nigerians.

    In his leadership, Tukur has brought to the fore his wide experience in business and government. He has worked in both the public and private sectors of the economy. He was a former governor of old Gongola State and an erstwhile minister. As the Chairman of the African Business Roundtable, Tukur has had very wide experience in business locally and internationally.

    A well-rounded politician, Dr. Bamanga has seen it all and made his wealth long ago. He is, therefore, in politics not to make money or to explore connections. He is rather in politics to serve, develop the nation and to contribute his quarter towards the success of the transformation agenda of the federal government under President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan.

    * Okpala is the Special Assistant on Media to the National Chairman of PDP