Scheming To Sit Tight

 By Babajide Kolade-Otitoju

At no time in the eleven-year history of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, have governors elected on its platform seen themselves as the most important components of the party than now. In the nation’s politics, characterised by unrestrained use of money as a means to an end, governors have increasingly seen themselves as a strategic and powerful bloc in the party.

tn-march-09-2009-cover

 The strength lies not in their number, but in the influence they wield and the amount of money they could throw around–when and if necessary. The mix of influence and money ensures that when it comes to taking fundamental decisions within the party, nobody treats them with levity.

Knowing how governors brought him to his knees just before the 2003 presidential primaries of the party, when most of them rooted for and urged Atiku Abubakar, then Vice President to contest against him, former President Olusegun Obasanjo was aware of the muscle governors can deploy. In 2006, he encouraged them to hold meetings with a view to producing Nigeria’s president in 2007. The governors got together under the leadership of Ayodele Fayose, former governor of Ekiti State, seeking to choose one of their own as Obasanjo’s successor.

  

Though the group did not choose a candidate by itself, as Obasanjo unilaterally picked Umar Yar’Adua out of the interested pack, which included Donald Duke, then governor of Cross River State; Ahmed Mohammed Makarfi (Kaduna), Victor Attah (Akwa Ibom), Peter Odili (Rivers), and Achike Udenwa (Imo) among others, the group rallied round one of their own–Yar’Adua. They did this by all means possible.

The governors were to show Obasanjo just how important they are in decision making in the PDP during the National Convention of the party last year, when they ensured the emergence of Vincent Ogbulafor as National Chairman, dumping Obasanjo’s candidate, Sam Egwu, former governor of Ebonyi State.

With Obasanjo out of power and incapable of coercing the governors, the former president, against his wish, yielded power and influence to the governors. The governors were clearly in control of majority of delegates to the convention and it showed.

The influence and power they had wielded for other people are now ready to be used for their own (selfish) interests. In response to the overwhelming demand of party members to have the PDP constitution amended, the governors recently set up a sub-committee to examine critical areas requiring amendment. These, they believe, will help “in addressing the clarion calls made by our “teeming party adherents all over the country for such amendments.”

The sub-committee submitted its recommendations last month. The far- reaching recommendations, curiously, have serious implications for internal democracy in the PDP. For example, the Governors Forum proposed an amendment to Article 12.8 of the constitution, which deals with election of delegates at ward congress. It proposes that only 10 ward delegates to the party congress are to be elected. There was no ceiling to the number of delegates previously.

The governors also propose an amendment to Article 12.17 of the party constitution, which deals with election of 25 delegates from each ward to local government congress. Instead of the 25 delegates from each ward of the local council elected at the ward congress, at least five of whom shall be women and who shall cease to function at the conclusion of congress for which they were elected, the governors want only 10 delegates elected at the ward congress. At least two (2) of these shall be women and shall cease to function at the conclusion of the congress for which they were elected.

The third amendment proposed by the governors is in relation to Article 12:40, which requires the accommodation of 25 delegates from each local council to the state congress. Now, the provision for the 25 delegates, according to the amendment proposed by the governors, will read three delegates, who shall now be elected to the state congress. This, most likely, will freeze women out.

Article 12:57, which deals with the inclusion of delegates in zonal congress was, however, not amended. It says zonal congresses shall consist of all members of the Zonal Working Committee, three zonal executive committees and the state executive commitees and all delegates to the national convention. On composition of National Convention of the party, i.e. Article 12:84, the governors propose to add former governors and their deputies.

This, an analyst told TheNEWS, seeks to give governors and their deputies a role in the party, even long after they are out of power. The sixth amendment proposed by the governors relates to Article 17 of the constitution, which deals with the procedure for nomination of candidates for elective offices. Here, the governors favour 10 delegates over the subsisting 25. They also want election of ward officers and councillorship candidates to be by direct primaries, at which all card-carrying members of the party at ward level shall participate.

The governors are of the view that the delegate system favoured by the PDP and other parties must be modified in the interest of party unity. They argue that the delegate system should be ditched because it “breeds violence and rancour, which will only spell doom for our dear party.” They are convinced that party officials at all levels are “the most appropriate category of persons to be entrusted with the important task of electing candidates suitable to contest public offices.” In addition, they posit that the delegate system encourages wealthy individuals to disrupt the election processes, even when credible candidates abound.

Perhaps the most controversial of all are the amendments proposed to Article 9:2, which deals with obligation of the party to its members. Here, there are three amendments which the governors described as very vital and cogent. The governors are proposing two new paragraphs to be added to the existing paragraphs. On page 18 of the document, the governors propose that “the party shall issue automatic tickets to any first-term serving president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and all first-term serving governors, who have expressed interest to re-contest for a second term without going through party primaries.”

The President can lose this privilege if there is a petition of misconduct supported by two-third
majority of governors and elected members of the National Assembly from the party. In the case of the governor of a state, such a petition has to be supported by “2/3 majority of PDP council chairmen and members of state Houses of Assembly. The petition must have been received not later than nine months to the expiration of the tenure of such a candidate and is verified to be true by the National Executive Committee of the party. The governors propose that where the party verifies and finds the allegations in the petition to be true, the candidate would be subjected to primaries.

In the amendment presented to the party leadership, the governors claim that “allowing such distinguished party members to proceed into party primaries is not only counter-productive, but capable of generating unnecessary tensions.” They also argued that not allowing the president and governors to go through party primaries will “create the enabling environment for stability, purposeful leadership and dedication to duty,” adding that “Experience has shown that there is a need to protect their interest.”

But many party members slammed the governors as arrogant and selfish, especially for considering themselves and the President as the only elected officers deserving of automatic tickets for a second term in office. Many are wondering whether only governors or the President can provide good leadership deserving of a second throw of the dice. Local government chairmen, state assembly members and National Assembly members are excluded from the governors’ proposed amendment to the PDP constitution.

Indeed, the position of the governors is not only unconstitutional, but also antithetical to one of the recommendations of the Justice Mohammed Uwais Electoral Reform Committee, which states that political parties should encourage internal democracy. The action of PDP governors also challenges the initial public posture of Yar’Adua, who had called on the political parties to support a free and fair emergence of candidates for political offices.

But those who are familiar with the the PDP are aware of the party’s penchant for treating serious political issues as a ‘family affair’. Only last year, Vincent Ogbulafor emerged the party’s chairman at a National Convention that was supposed to have produced a democratically elected chairman. But this was not to be, as the governors ditched all the candidates at the last minute for Ogbulafor, whose election still remains an issue of controversy.

Sources close to TheNEWS revealed that the governors are seeking greater autonomy in the appointment of candidates at both the national and state congresses. This will, therefore, pave the way for only the governors’ aides and loyalists to constitute the college of delegates. This will, naturally, exclude party members from participation in choosing the party’s representatives. It also impleis that even if a governor is unpopular, he could get a chance to recontest just by working on the members of the state assembly and party leaders, thereby shutting out ordinary party members from exercising their right to choose their representatives. By this, the acrimony the party hopes to avoid will be its lot on account of exclusion of ordinary members.

However, the party will become attractive to governors of other parties, who will see it as a surefire way of securing tickets to recontest rather than submit themselves to competition in their parties. Zamfara State governor, Mahmuda Shinkafi, who recently decamped to the PDP from the All Nigeria Peoples Party, ANPP, will win an automatic ticket if the proposal sails through.

Henry Seriake-Dickson, Chairman House of Representatives Committee on Judiciary described the proposed amendment as “ highly undemocratic.” “Whatever decision they take,” he said, “we would revise it by law.” He added that his committee has started working on a bill to check the excesses of some unscrupulous politicians who abhor internal democracy.

Dickson is supported Chiedu Godswill Eluemunor, a House of Representatives member from Anambra State. Eluemunor, a PDP member, said the desire of the governors to have automatic ticket is not democratic and cannot be operational. “If they say our democracy is young and we should amend the constitution to stabilise it, they may have a reason. But even in the face of that, it is still totally undemocratic because that will amount to closing the political space. Nobody has the monopoly of ideas to bring meaningful change to the system. Again, they have no right to deny anybody the constitutional right to aspire to any position. It will only land us in anarchy,” he argued.

Polycarp Nwite, former Ambassador to Botswana and now Senior Special Assistant to the President on Political Affairs, said:‘‘For us to have a free and fair election in this country, I strongly believe that the best thing we should do in the PDP is to first have democracy within the party, where from ward to the presidency, primaries have to be transparent.’’

He added that it makes no sense to give automatic ticket to governors and the President and said Yar’ Adua will not succumb to such blackmail. ‘‘Are they saying that if a governor did not perform and if he steals all our money, we can give him another chance for him to steal more? Is that what you are saying? Gentleman, do not forget that I fought for democracy, I am a hero of democracy and I am recognised as such. And I will not trade it for anything. I stand for democracy,’’ he declared.

Strong contrary opinions, no doubt. But in a country where executive positions provide access to near-limitless cash and other instruments of coercion, such opinions have very slender chances of standing up to the governors’ juggernaut.

Did you Enjoy this story? you may want to subscribe to our RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

Random Post

• July 13, 2009 -- Daniel: An Unfortunate Descent (2)
• June 8, 2009 -- Endangered Sector (6)
• August 11, 2008 -- Two Faces Of Lagos (0)
• January 26, 2009 -- Ewohimi /A Governor And His In-Laws (0)
• March 1, 2010 -- Do-Or-Die President (3)
• March 31, 2008 -- A Really Glorious Night (0)
• January 19, 2009 -- Wenger Passes On (0)
• March 2, 2009 -- Tale Of The Expected (0)
• July 20, 2009 -- Niger Delta; The Report Yar’Adua Is Sitting On (0)
• October 6, 2008 -- Quotes; 13 October, 2008 (0)

No tags for this post.

Related posts

• No related posts.