Our correspondent learnt that the
President wanted the two influential politicians in their respective
states to strengthen his hold in the north.
The President, a source told The PUNCH,
had in fact asked the duo to defect to the PDP. The two ex-governors are
members of the All Nigeria Peoples Party.
The two former governors, it was
gathered, would help the President neutralise the anti-Jonathan
sentiment in the north where top politicians are clamouring for power
shift from the South.
The calculations in the President’s
team, investigation further revealed, are that these two prominent
politicians will also come to the PDP with their state governors.
The governors are said to be protégées of the former governors.
For example, Yerima was said to have
single-handedly installed the incumbent governor of his state, Alhaji
Abubakar Yari, after he fell out with Alhaji Mahmuda Shinkafi, who
succeeded him while leaving office in 2007.
Shinkafi was Yerima’s deputy for eight
years and was the only deputy governor that succeeded his boss among the
36 deputy governors in the country then.
In Borno, Modu-Sheriff was also believed to have installed the incumbent governor, Alhaji Kashim Shettima.
Our correspondent learnt that the
National Chairman of the PDP, Dr. Bamanga Tukur, had already met with
both Yari and Shettima to discuss the modalities for the governors to
dump their party for the PDP.
One of the carrots being dangled before
the governors, which our correspondent gathered they could fall for, is
the promise to allow them fly the flag of the PDP in their desire to go
for second term.
Both governors are on their first term, and like Jonathan, they are said to be interested in contesting second term.
The romance between the two governors
and Jonathan was said to have been behind the exclusion of the ANPP from
being part of the merger talks of the Congress for Progressive Change
and Action Congress of Nigeria.
It will be recalled that the National
Leader of the CPC and former Head of State, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari
(retd.) had excluded the ANPP while inaugurating his party’s merger
committee.
Asked why the CPC merger committee was
not going to meet with the ANPP, Buhari said, “We have written priority
(with ACN) and we are going to go into discussion with ACN before we
move to the other party.”
A member of the committee and the
party’s governorship candidate in Enugu State during the 2011 election,
Chief Osita Okechukwu, said his party was aware that the PDP had some
associates within the ANPP.
He said, “You know within ANPP, there
are some associates of PDP there and that was what the General was
particular about because some of these elements might not allow the
merger to work.
“So why don’t we make sure that it works before allowing everybody to come in.”
Also, the President was said to have
recalled Nigeria’s Ambassador to Canada, Chief Ojo Maduekwe, to join a
crusade to neutralise those opposed to his second term bid.
The former minister is a member of the
Prof. Jerry Gana committee saddled with the responsibility of
reorganising the party’s Board of Trustees.
Presidency sources said the ambassador
might not return to his base soon because of the “urgent” assignment he
has to do for the President here.
One of the sources said, “The President
is very serious about his second term ambition and I can tell you that
serious plotting is going on now.
“Maduekwe is in the country now and he may not return to his base in Canada because of this urgent assignment.
“The President is taking the threat of
the governors and other notable leaders of the party against his second
term ambition seriously and does not want to take anything for granted.”
Part of the plot, it was further
gathered, was to disallow the National Legal Adviser of the party, Mr.
Victor Kwon, from representing the party in the case involving the
suspended National Secretary of the party, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola.
Already, Tukur has written a letter to
Kwon, asking him to steer clear of the case and allow Mr. Joe Gadzama
(SAN) to take over the case and represent the party.
Like Tukur, Gadzama is from Adamawa State.
Tukur believes that Kwon is sympathetic
to Oyinlola, who is seen to be working in tandem with a majority of the
members of the National Working Committee of the party and governors,
against the second term ambition of Jonathan.
You have made some really good points there. I checked on the
ReplyDeleteinternet to learn more about the issue and found most individuals
will go along with your views on this site.
My site :: quick cash check advance