The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, yesterday wielded the big stick on the embattled Rivers State Governor and Chairman of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum, NGF, Rotimi Amaechi, by suspending him from the party.
The National Working Committee, NWC, of the party hinged his suspension on anti-party activities. But Amaechi has vowed to fight his suspension to the finish. “I will not leave the PDP. I will go to court.
The aircraft issue is same politics, pure politics. For one year plus, a minister refuses to sign import permit. I’m sure you are aware of the House of Representatives’ Committee report on the plane issue. “I want to say the way these people at the federal level are acting, they may come for my life. So, when you pray, please pray for me,” he said. He said there was nothing wrong for a governor to ask for his right, “which the PDP is now describing as anti-party.”
Amaechi added: “Internal democracy is important in our party, if they fought me by all means, and I still won the Nigeria Governors’ Forum election, what should they do? “They should have joined me to thank God. Because what it means is that God has spoken. “It happened when I was in Ghana. I fasted and prayed for six months, 6a.m. to 6p.m., and God made me governor,” he added. Meanwhile, former Vice- President Atiku Abubakar has called for caution on the development, asking the founding fathers of the PDP to speak up and save the party from collapse.
The PDP also yesterday constituted an 11-member panel to investigate the allegation of anti-party activities levelled against the governor. Amaechi’s suspension is coming three days after he was re-elected as the NGF chairman, an exercise some of the governors are still protesting. In a statement by the PDP National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, the party after an emergency meeting yesterday, said it took the decision after it had considered the petition submitted by the PDP Rivers Executive Committee against Amaechi for violating some sections of the party’s constitution.
He said that the suspension against Amaechi became necessary for violating “Articles 58 1 (b), (c ), (h) and (m) of the PDP Constitution following his refusal to obey the lawful directive of the Rivers State Executive Committee to rescind his decision dissolving the elected Executive Council of Obiokpor Local Government Area of Rivers State.”
Article 58 (1) states subject to the provisions of the PDP constitution, the party shall have power to discipline any member who (b) says or does anything likely to bring the party into disrepute, hatred or contempt; (c ) disobeys or neglects to carry out lawful directives of the party or any organ or officer of the party; (h) engages in any conduct likely to cause disaffection among members of the party or is likely to disrupt the peaceful, lawful and efficient conduct of the business of the party; (m) fails, refuses or neglects to treat a petition, complaints or appeal timeously.
The statement also states: “The National Working Committee after preliminary hearing, in exercise of the powers conferred by Articles 57 (3), 59 (3), 59 (5) and 29 (2.b), hereby suspends the Executive Governor of Rivers State, Rt Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi as a member of the PDP and refers the matter to the appropriate disciplinary committee of the party.
“This is in furtherance of the determination of the leadership of the party to enforce discipline at all levels within the party.” Article 57 (3) of the PDP constitution says that the Working Committee at any level of the party and the Executive Committee may after preliminary hearings, suspends a member from the party for a period not exceeding one month, during which period the member so suspended shall lose his right to contest any election, and shall be referred to the appropriate Disciplinary Committee.
Article 59 (5) states that subject to the provisions of this constitution, the National Executive Committee shall have power to expel any member of the party for acts of indiscipline or is conduct likely bring the party into disrepute. But in a swift reaction, the Rivers State government said that the party’s decision to suspend Amaechi was a political witchhunt.
The Rivers State Commissioner for InformationCommunications, Ibim Semenitari, said that the suspension was worrisome. “The reason given is the suspension of the Obio Akpor council. This is purely a legislative matter and done in accordance to the laws of local government councils in Rivers State,” she said.
It will be recalled that the new leadership of the PDP in Rivers State led by Felix Obuah had demanded the immediate reinstatement of the chairman of Obio Akpor Local Government, who was recently sacked from office on allegation of corruption by the Rivers State House of Assembly and endorsed by the state government. National Mirror had exclusively reported that the Presidency and PDP were planning to deal with some governors of the ruling party who voted against President Goodluck Jonathan’s preferred candidate in the NGF, Jonah Jang. The election produced Amaechi as the leader of the forum but Plateau State Governor Jang also emerged as a factional chairman.
Some of the governors targeted for attack besides Amaechi include Aliyu Babangida (Niger), Murtala Nyako (Adamawa), Rabiu Kwankwaso (Kano), Sule Lamido (Jigawa), Aliyu Wamako (Sokoto), Saidu Dakingari (Kebbi), and Abdullfatah Ahmed (Kwara). These PDP and other opposition governors were said to have voted for Amaechi to ensure his victory.
A source told National Mirror that the plot to expel some of the PDP governors was part of the pro-Jonathan governors’ demand from the PDP National Chairman, Tukur, whom they met at his residence in Abuja on Saturday.
One of the governors told National Mirror that any intimidation from the party leadership wouldl only expose them to reaching out to the leaders of the All Progressive Congress, APC.
Gadzama heads PDP investigation panel
The investigation panel is chaired by Joe Kyari Gadzama (SAN).
Other members include PDP National Legal Adviser, Victor Kwon; Inalegwu Onche, Friday Nwosu, Udorji Amedu, Ola Kukuyi, Wakil Mohammed, Yusuf Jangwe, Mrs. Bola Doherty, Tanimu Adamson and Anicho who will serve as the secretary. Briefing journalists, Metuh said that the party’s decision to suspend Amaechi three days after the NGF election had nothing to do with the outcome of the election.
He said that the report of the political situation in Rivers State got to the NWC at the weekend, hence the convocation of an emergency meeting to end the crisis. Metuh said the suspension of Amaechi was done in good faith and not an act of victimisation and that if the panel found him not culpable, the suspension would be lifted.
“The constitution gives the NWC the right and the discretion to handle the affairs of the party and we have not had any reason to set up a disciplinary committee and investigative committee in the first instance and because this issue has come up, under our constitution we must set up a committee to look at it, we must refer the petition to a committee and that is why the NWC has set up this committee to handle it.
Governor Amaechi, who spoke at a youth interactive session, with the theme: “Consolidating on Rivers of our Dreams” held at the Banquet Hall of Government House, Port Harcourt, said he was not given fair hearing.
He said the NWC issued a statement to suspend him without any invitation and fair hearing. He said: “I was not invited by the National Working Committee of PDP; I was not given fair hearing. What I heard was that: why did I refuse to reinstate the suspended Obio/Akpor Council executive?
Who suspended them?” he asked The youths at the forum replied: “The Rivers State House of Assembly. “So, you see the political witch-hunting. It is so ridiculous. My party (PDP) must rise above political witch-hunting.
“Governor Amaechi did not suspend Obio/Akpor Council (executive). I hope you know, I have the power and my power is to dissolve. I can dissolve Obio/Akpor Council (executive).
But I have not done that. What the Assembly is doing is that they are investigating corruption. But the party said they should not investigate corruption, is it fair? “If they are not guilty, then they will re-instate them, but if they are guilty, then we will ask for the dissolution of the council.
We have not even gone half, and the party (PDP) says reinstate them. It means that the party likes corruption,” he said. Speaking on the NGF election, Amaechi said: “You will see it on the internet when the Governors were voting, all the governors were there and you will also see the counting. We (Governors) agreed to voting, and all the governors voted, so any governor who said he didn’t vote is lying against the nation because all of us are on oath to govern properly. So, we should not lie.
Every governor voted, you will see the video. “If we leaders of Nigeria today are refusing to accept the results of a properly organised election supervised by the Director-General of the Governors’ Forum, and somebody brought a paper that was signed in April.
If you check that list, it was signed in April and you brought it on May 24th after the governors have finished voting their chairman into office, that list is not part of our election. There is a rumour that they want to go to court to stop me as NGF chairman. We are ready to meet them in court but they should not go through the backdoor to get an order,” Amaechi said.
Save PDP from collapse, Atiku urges founding fathers
In a statement made available to National Mirror yesterday in Abuja, Atiku said he was particularly disturbed by the worsening polarisation of the party and internal divisions which might weaken the party structures at the state and deepen the crisis between governors and the President.
The former Vice-President explained that as one of the founding fathers of the party, he had a duty to call on other founding members to rise to the occasion and caution the forces that are bent on tearing the party apart and providing the ammo for self destruction. He lamented the failure of the National Executive Council, NEC, to meet in line with the provisions of the party’s constitution and the inability of the Board of Trustees to rise to the occasion of arresting this ugly development.
According to him, the bitter internal divisions within the PDP, has led to crisis in the party leadership in some states, division in the Nigeria Governors’ Forum and the suspension of a sitting governor over disagreements on principle could have been avoided if the founders of the party had added their voices of caution and moderation. With the challenges of providing good governance and the bid for re-election in 2015, Atiku noted that the PDP could not afford the current acrimony as it is undermining democratic structures at all levels.
He warned that if the crisis was left to get out of hand or not properly managed, the PDP might find itself weaker and politically vulnerable. According to Atiku, a house divided against itself could not stand, adding that silence by concerned PDP stakeholders was a dangerous option at this point when the party faces the challenges of retaining its leadership in 2015.
Amaechi’s suspension, a colossal affront on democracy – ANPP
The All Nigeria People’s Party, ANPP, has said that the suspension of the Governor Amaechi from the PDP is a colossal affront on democracy and a dagger in the soul of its practices. In a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Emma Eneukwu, the party asked: “What is the crime of Chief Amaechi?
We proffer an answer: he won election as Chairman of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum by 19 votes to 16 scored by his closest challenger. “Even though we respect the internal dimension of the recent decision of the PDP, but as committed democrats we are constrained to react in view of its wider implication in our nation’s democratic practice. “We wonder at how a political party that lays claim to democratic usages could rise to suspend one of its own for winning an election!
“This action rubbishes its claim to any democratic credential, as it has clearly shown that it practices: despotism and the tyranny of a cabal. “We worry at this dangerous development and ask Nigerians to take due notice of this charade and place it in perspective in view of the forthcoming 2015 general elections. “As a political party, we are alarmed at this unwholesome development and urge all lovers of democracy to remain vigilant and join us in our resolve to resist this burgeoning cankerworm.”
Ruling PDP on a free fall to Abyss!
The Congress for Progressive Change, CPC, also said the ruling party will soon fall into abysss. The National Publicity Secretary of CPC, Rotimi Fashakin, said: “We are appalled by the sordid affair that the recently concluded chairmanship election of the NGF degenerated into. What started as a spat between the party’s National Leader and nation’s President, Dr Goodluck Jonathan and the NGF’s re-elected Chairman, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, has now snowballed into the suspension of the latter!
“We are aware that the PDP’s national leadership was miffed by Governor Amaechi’s victory, despite the high-wire opposition that the Presidency mounted to forestall. The anti- Amaechi governors that are being prodded by the Presidency are clearly unaware of the buffoonery of their claims that a pre-election endorsement easily translated to the votes garnered by their candidate (Chief Jonah Jang) at the Governors’ election. This, again, attests to the opprobrious level that the PDP ‘s degeneration can be!
“The CPC, undoubtedly, is pained by the portent of this infra-dig to the entrenchment of inspiring democratic values in the polity. We believe that there are democratic instruments available for resolving differences between a President and governor in a presidential system, without unduly overheating the polity.
“We view the suspension of Governor Rotimi Amaechi as the manifestation of a party at war with itself. It beggars belief that the PDP decided to jettison the law of natural justice of not being Judge in one’s cause. It is a Party whose implosion is imminent.
Unfortunately, there is no voice of reason anymore because this despicable leadership style ensures obsequious subservience! We hereby enjoin the Nigerian people not to lose sight of the portent of the deplorable tactics to the survival of our democracy.
Indeed, the increasing desperation of the President is already causing more trepidation as we move towards the 2015 elections. It is our hope that the President will arrest this drift to the aAbyss of his party and the anticipated collateral damage to the polity.”
This is a shame – Abubakar Tsav
Also, former Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Alhaji Abubakar Tsav, decried the suspension, which he attributed to the re-election of the governor as NGF chair. “Every person who is elected and takes oath of office and allegiance as a state governor, is expected to be above reproach, temperate, self controlled, respectable, reliable, impartial, dependable, honest, forthright and God fearing. The governors agreed to form an Association and named it Nigerian
Northern youths reject suspension
A socio-political umbrella organisation of northern youths, Arewa Youth Forum, AYF, has rejected Amaechi’s suspension. AYF national president, Gambo Ibrahim Gujungu, called for the immediate reversal of the suspension, saying PDP should refrain from act capable of destroying democracy in Nigeria. The group accused President Goodluck Jonathan of being behind the political tension, stressing that such move would rather spoil his chances ahead of 2015 elections.
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