Amaechi/Akpabio In Shouting Match,As Obj Meets Warring Parties

For about two hours Monday night, governors elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) traded blames before ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo on the crises threatening to cripple the ruling party.

The ex-President had asked the governors to speak on their grievances. Each had three minutes.

President Goodluck Jonathan was not at the meeting, which was tagged “exploratory”.

The open complaint approach, however, created tension, with governors Rotimi Amaechi (Rivers) and Godswill Akpabio (Akwa Ibom) engaging in a shouting match.

After taking complaints from all, Obasanjo said the meeting would continue last night.

It was learnt that there were eight issues tabled at the tension-soaked meeting at the Presidential Villa.

They are: division within PDP leadership; disagreement between some governors and the National Chairman of the party, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur; the implosion in the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF); crises in some states; Anambra governorship poll; Rivers crisis; reconciliation within the party; and the alarm raised by five Northern governors on how to keep the party intact and win the 2015 poll.

It was learnt that most of the governors spoke on the eight issues.

Obasanjo chose only to be a listener and a moderator.

A source, who spoke in confidence, said: “Obasanjo made sure he met alone with the governors. Contrary to the expectations of some of the governors, President Goodluck Jonathan was not at the session.

“Apparently acting on representations made by various governors to him, Obasanjo set the tone of the meeting, which he said had to do with the challenges being faced by PDP.

“He told us that the meeting would be ‘exploratory’ and each of the 23 governors of the party will be allowed to talk for only three minutes on why the party is in crises and the polarisation of PDP governors.

“Shortly after the introductory remarks, the governors started speaking on their grievances and how to resolve the crises rocking the party.

“Virtually all the governors agreed that things were upside down in the party.”

A governor reportedly told Obasanjo: “We know you can address the challenges facing PDP. If we go into election in this state, our party will lose in 2015. Please, don’t be tired to resolve these problems.”

Another source spoke of how a governor said there was no point discussing the points being raised by five Northern governors because, in his view, they had made up their mind to go to another party.

“But Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso interjected by saying: ‘No one is defecting to another party; we are not going to any new or merger party. We will remain in PDP and restore order. That is not the intention of the five governors when we decided to intervene.”

A governor, who spoke in confidence, said: “Some of us tried to draw Obasanjo’s attention to the fact that the disagreement over the election of the Chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF), Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, was an integral part of the crises affecting PDP.

“Some anti-Amaechi governors shouted no, no, no. They insisted that the NGF crisis had nothing to do with PDP problems. They said the NGF problem was unconnected with the stress in PDP.”

On the reported shouting match between Amaechi and Akpabio, a governor who pleaded not to be named, said Amaechi attributed the crisis to the attitude of some PDP governors, “who will always go behind their colleagues to tell the President a different thing to curry favour”.

Amaechi was quoted as saying: “Each time we all took a collective decision, some of our colleagues will go and tell the President a different story to show that they were not part of it.”

But the Chairman of the PDP Governors Forum, Akpabio, disagreed with Amaechi saying “that is not correct; it is not true.”

Akpabio said the ongoing reconciliation within the PDP is giving chieftains of the opposition party sleepless night.

Responding to a question, the source, a governor, said: “After exhausting ourselves and trading blames, Obasanjo merely adjourned the meeting to Tuesday night.

“The former President did not blame anyone and refused to pass verdict on comments or submissions of the governors.”

It could not be immediately ascertained if President Goodluck Jonathan would be part of the second round meeting, which was in progress last night.