Barely 24 hours after the Alhaji Bamanga
Tukur-led National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party
(PDP) directed the Professor Jerry Gana-led mini-national convention planning
committee of the party to close shop for now, the committee has reportedly
dismissed the directive and stepped up its activities in line with the mandate
given to it by the NEC of the party which set it up.
The NEC of the party had at its emergency meeting held on June 20 this year put the Prof. Gana committee in place to organise a mini-national convention for the elections of about 20 members of the NEC and NWC who resigned from their positions in line with the report of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on its 2012 national convention which said that their elections did not follow due process and called for fresh elections.
The NEC approved July 11 and 20 respectively for the South-West Zonal Congress and the mini-national convention, but later put on hold because of the ongoing Ramadan fasting while the committee last week came up with new dates of August 24 and 30 for the zonal congress and the convention proper before the Alhaji Tukur-led NWC on Monday suddenly halted its activities via a press statement without recourse to the NEC that set it up.
However, a member of the National Convention Committee told the Nigerian Tribune in confidence in Abuja on Tuesday that the action of the Alhaji Tukur-led NWC on the assignment given to it by the NEC was illegal and would not hold water, saying that the pronouncement by the NWC was “very embarrassing, misleading and dis-respectful” to the party and the calibre of the members of the committee.
According to the source,”this is not the first time the NEC would be setting up convention committees and this one cannot be different except if the Alhaji Tukur-led NWC has a hidden agenda not known to the party and the members of the committee, the NEC is superior to the NWC, it is interesting to note that the committee led by Prof Gana along with the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ike Ekwueremadu had last week based on respect for the office of the national chairman, proceeded to brief Alhaji Tukur on its activities, but were locked out by his security aides, what an insult?”.
The source, however, said that the committee had already alerted President Goodluck Jonathan who is also the national leader of the party, the Board of Trustees, (BOT) and the PDP Governors’ Forum among others about the action of the Alhaji Tukur-led NWC and the need for urgent intervention in the overall interest of the party.
“The action of the NWC is suspicious, you can see that the same drama is playing out in the South-West zone of the party when a group went ahead to select another acting national secretary of the party apart from the one approved by the NEC while the committee was busy planning for the zonal congress and the convention, this is baffling and laughable, we were taken aback when the members of the Chief Ishola Filani-led Zonal Caretaker Committee of the party were even parts of the illegal selection of the acting National Secretary, mind you some people had already purchased nomination forms, why the hurry?”, our source fumed while giving an insight into the development.
This is coming just as it was learnt on Tuesday that President Jonathan has reportedly waded into the matter and summoned Alhaji Tukur for “consultation” on the matter.
A Presidency source said that the presidency had been receiving bitter complaints and protests from various quarters since Monday when the decision of the NWC to halt the activities of the committee was made public and urged President Jonathan to wade in and call Tukur to order without further delay.
In a related development, the anti-Tukur groups in the party including state governors, state party chairmen, members of the BOT, NEC and National Assembly have reportedly gone back to the drawing board to strategise for the immediate removal of the Alhaji Tukur-led NWC over its action on the national convention planning committee, saying that,”with this latest action of Alhaji Tukur, he has again violated the rule of his engagement and he must go this time around.”
“ The other time, president Jonathan who is the national leader of the party pleaded that we should spare Tukur to continue as the national chairman with an undertaking never to violate the constitution of the party again or act unilaterally on salient issues, he has done it again, enough is enough, the party is bigger than an individual or groups,” a member of the BOT of the party said in anger.
Emerging facts has revealed that Alhaji Tukur had vowed to block all the members of the NWC that resigned recently from coming back on board and was not comfortable with the guidelines released for the convention by the committee that retained the zoning arrangement which was used last year.
The NEC of the party had at its emergency meeting held on June 20 this year put the Prof. Gana committee in place to organise a mini-national convention for the elections of about 20 members of the NEC and NWC who resigned from their positions in line with the report of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on its 2012 national convention which said that their elections did not follow due process and called for fresh elections.
The NEC approved July 11 and 20 respectively for the South-West Zonal Congress and the mini-national convention, but later put on hold because of the ongoing Ramadan fasting while the committee last week came up with new dates of August 24 and 30 for the zonal congress and the convention proper before the Alhaji Tukur-led NWC on Monday suddenly halted its activities via a press statement without recourse to the NEC that set it up.
However, a member of the National Convention Committee told the Nigerian Tribune in confidence in Abuja on Tuesday that the action of the Alhaji Tukur-led NWC on the assignment given to it by the NEC was illegal and would not hold water, saying that the pronouncement by the NWC was “very embarrassing, misleading and dis-respectful” to the party and the calibre of the members of the committee.
According to the source,”this is not the first time the NEC would be setting up convention committees and this one cannot be different except if the Alhaji Tukur-led NWC has a hidden agenda not known to the party and the members of the committee, the NEC is superior to the NWC, it is interesting to note that the committee led by Prof Gana along with the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ike Ekwueremadu had last week based on respect for the office of the national chairman, proceeded to brief Alhaji Tukur on its activities, but were locked out by his security aides, what an insult?”.
The source, however, said that the committee had already alerted President Goodluck Jonathan who is also the national leader of the party, the Board of Trustees, (BOT) and the PDP Governors’ Forum among others about the action of the Alhaji Tukur-led NWC and the need for urgent intervention in the overall interest of the party.
“The action of the NWC is suspicious, you can see that the same drama is playing out in the South-West zone of the party when a group went ahead to select another acting national secretary of the party apart from the one approved by the NEC while the committee was busy planning for the zonal congress and the convention, this is baffling and laughable, we were taken aback when the members of the Chief Ishola Filani-led Zonal Caretaker Committee of the party were even parts of the illegal selection of the acting National Secretary, mind you some people had already purchased nomination forms, why the hurry?”, our source fumed while giving an insight into the development.
This is coming just as it was learnt on Tuesday that President Jonathan has reportedly waded into the matter and summoned Alhaji Tukur for “consultation” on the matter.
A Presidency source said that the presidency had been receiving bitter complaints and protests from various quarters since Monday when the decision of the NWC to halt the activities of the committee was made public and urged President Jonathan to wade in and call Tukur to order without further delay.
In a related development, the anti-Tukur groups in the party including state governors, state party chairmen, members of the BOT, NEC and National Assembly have reportedly gone back to the drawing board to strategise for the immediate removal of the Alhaji Tukur-led NWC over its action on the national convention planning committee, saying that,”with this latest action of Alhaji Tukur, he has again violated the rule of his engagement and he must go this time around.”
“ The other time, president Jonathan who is the national leader of the party pleaded that we should spare Tukur to continue as the national chairman with an undertaking never to violate the constitution of the party again or act unilaterally on salient issues, he has done it again, enough is enough, the party is bigger than an individual or groups,” a member of the BOT of the party said in anger.
Emerging facts has revealed that Alhaji Tukur had vowed to block all the members of the NWC that resigned recently from coming back on board and was not comfortable with the guidelines released for the convention by the committee that retained the zoning arrangement which was used last year.
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Politics