As the race for the chairmanship of the Board of
Trustees (BoT) of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) hots up, the
Presidency and the party hierarchy may have begun moves to streamline
contenders and ensure that a candidate sympathetic with Mr. President
emerges winner.
To this end, former BoT chairman, Chief Tony Anenih, who is widely believed to be one of President Goodluck Jonathan’s candidates, appears to have been technically schemed out of the race with his appointment by the Federal Government on Thursday as chairman of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA).
With the appointment of Anenih as the NPA boss, according to a source within PDP, the President is now left with two major contenders for the race: former Vice-President, Dr. Alex Ekwueme and former Senate President, Ken Nnamani, one of whom is likely to slug it out with former National Chairman of the party, Dr Ahmadu Ali, who is believed to have the support of former President, Olusegun Obasanjo .
The apparent scheming out of Anenih, a party source said, is the highpoint of a plot to have a united voice and a block vote for the President’s candidate during the party’s BoT gathering, rescheduled to hold in January 2013.
The PDP BoT Chairmanship position has become a thorny issue which seems to have polarised the party along factional lines as 2015 general election approaches, with each group positioning itself for the control of the party structure in order to dictate who gets what in the coming election.
Twice this year, the party’s BoT has slated meetings where its chairman was supposed to be elected, but the election was postponed on both occasions due to what party sources attributed to “explosive conflict of interest among the party leadership.”
The relationship between ex-president Obasanjo who is believed to have a very strong influence in the party across board and Jonathan has become frosty over the 2015 Presidency with both camps in fierce tussle to control the party structure.
A source within the party stated that the spat between the President and his erstwhile godfather is seen in political circles as the latest evidence of increasingly tense 2015 power struggle within the ruling party. Obasanjo is said not to be favourably disposed towards backing a Jonathan second term.
The source also added that the President’s camp suspected that Obasanjo is the brain behind those advocating for power shift to the North and a prominent backer of the alleged presidential bid by the Jigawa State governor, Sule Lamido, with the Rivers State governor, Rotimi Amaechi, as his running mate.
The face-off recently lead to attacks and counter-attacks by the two party leaders.
Penultimate week, however, Jonathan was reported to have begun moves to reconcile with Obasanjo. The President was said to be behind a visit by the National Chairman of the party Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, and other leaders to the Abeokuta residence of the former President, where they were alleged to have pleaded with Obasanjo to bury the hatchet in the interest of the party.
While receiving Tukur and his team during the visit Obasanjo said nothing would make him to keep mute on burning national issues.
The former President disclosed that the country, the party and government would remain his primary concern, saying, “Because, if there is no Nigeria, there will not be a party; and if there is no party, there will be nothing to govern on the platform of the party.
“If there is anything that requires my own comment, position or views I will say it. It is only when you kill me. It is my passion, patriotism and love that will continue to make me say my own.”
DailyIndependent
To this end, former BoT chairman, Chief Tony Anenih, who is widely believed to be one of President Goodluck Jonathan’s candidates, appears to have been technically schemed out of the race with his appointment by the Federal Government on Thursday as chairman of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA).
With the appointment of Anenih as the NPA boss, according to a source within PDP, the President is now left with two major contenders for the race: former Vice-President, Dr. Alex Ekwueme and former Senate President, Ken Nnamani, one of whom is likely to slug it out with former National Chairman of the party, Dr Ahmadu Ali, who is believed to have the support of former President, Olusegun Obasanjo .
The apparent scheming out of Anenih, a party source said, is the highpoint of a plot to have a united voice and a block vote for the President’s candidate during the party’s BoT gathering, rescheduled to hold in January 2013.
The PDP BoT Chairmanship position has become a thorny issue which seems to have polarised the party along factional lines as 2015 general election approaches, with each group positioning itself for the control of the party structure in order to dictate who gets what in the coming election.
Twice this year, the party’s BoT has slated meetings where its chairman was supposed to be elected, but the election was postponed on both occasions due to what party sources attributed to “explosive conflict of interest among the party leadership.”
The relationship between ex-president Obasanjo who is believed to have a very strong influence in the party across board and Jonathan has become frosty over the 2015 Presidency with both camps in fierce tussle to control the party structure.
A source within the party stated that the spat between the President and his erstwhile godfather is seen in political circles as the latest evidence of increasingly tense 2015 power struggle within the ruling party. Obasanjo is said not to be favourably disposed towards backing a Jonathan second term.
The source also added that the President’s camp suspected that Obasanjo is the brain behind those advocating for power shift to the North and a prominent backer of the alleged presidential bid by the Jigawa State governor, Sule Lamido, with the Rivers State governor, Rotimi Amaechi, as his running mate.
The face-off recently lead to attacks and counter-attacks by the two party leaders.
Penultimate week, however, Jonathan was reported to have begun moves to reconcile with Obasanjo. The President was said to be behind a visit by the National Chairman of the party Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, and other leaders to the Abeokuta residence of the former President, where they were alleged to have pleaded with Obasanjo to bury the hatchet in the interest of the party.
While receiving Tukur and his team during the visit Obasanjo said nothing would make him to keep mute on burning national issues.
The former President disclosed that the country, the party and government would remain his primary concern, saying, “Because, if there is no Nigeria, there will not be a party; and if there is no party, there will be nothing to govern on the platform of the party.
“If there is anything that requires my own comment, position or views I will say it. It is only when you kill me. It is my passion, patriotism and love that will continue to make me say my own.”
DailyIndependent
No comments:
Post a Comment