President Goodluck Jonathan on Wednesday engaged some leaders of the Peoples
Democratic Party in a meeting aimed at taking a
common position on the Tuesday defection of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal.
The meeting took place hours after the House
said the PDP, individuals and groups condemning
the defection of the speaker to the All
Progressives Congress should not dictate to it on
how to conduct its affairs.
Tambuwal had announced his defection from the
PDP before he adjourned sitting till December 3.
The situation made the President to summon the
National Chairman of the PDP, Adamu Mu’azu,
to the meeting which had the Deputy Speaker of
the House, Emeka Ihedioha; the Deputy Leader of
the House, Mr. Leo Ogor; and a member from
Delta State, Ndudi Elumelu, in attendance.
Some PDP governors such as Gabriel Suswam
(Benue); Godswill Akpabio (Akwa Ibom); Seriake
Dickson (Bayelsa): Ibrahim Dankwabo (Gombe)
and Sullivan Chime (Enugu) were also part of the
meeting.
Top government officials who attended the
parley included the Secretary to the Government
of the Federation, Anyim Pius Anyim; the National
Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki; and the
Attorney-General of the Federation, Mr.
Muhammed Adoke (SAN).
One of those in attendance told one of our
correspondents on the condition of anonymity
that the meeting centered on how to make
Tambuwal vacate his seat as speaker.
“The issue of the Speaker and his exit was one of
the fundamental issues discussed at the meeting,”
he said.
The source however did not disclose the decision
reached at the meeting.
Another source said that Ihedioha “took the heat
at the meeting.”
He did not explain further.
The presence of Adoke and Dasuki at the meeting
suggested that they might have reviewed the legal
and security implications of the options available
to them with the two government officials.
Earlier, Mu’azu had at another meeting the
President had with a delegation of the Federal
Capital Territory Council of Chiefs, dropped the
hint that Jonathan summoned him.
“The President had summoned me for a meeting.
I was with him when he wanted to come and
receive you and he told me to follow you. I only
did follow follow,” he had told members of the
delegation.
The PDP had shortly after Tambuwal announced
his defection called on him to do the needful by
resigning as speaker.
The party, argued through its National Publicity
Secretary, Olisa Metuh, that since Tambuwal
became the speaker on the ticket of the “majority
party (PDP), he had no right to continue to occupy
the seat.
But the House said on Tuesday that the PDP and
most of the commentators on the issue were
“ignorant” of the provisions of the 1999
Constitution (as amended) and the House
Standing Orders.
The Chairman of the House Committee on Media
and Public Affairs, Victor Ogene, who spoke on
behalf of his colleagues, said Tambuwal did not
breach any law in defecting to the APC.
He also noted that there was no provision in the
constitution prescribing that the speaker must be
elected from among the majority party members.
Ogene cited Section 50 (1)(b) of the constitution to
buttress his argument.
He said, “The clear provisions of Section 50(1) (b)
of the Nigerian Constitution easily settle the
worries regarding the continued speakership of
Tambuwal – ‘There shall be a Speaker and Deputy
Speaker of the House of Representatives who
shall be elected by the members of that House
from among themselves.’’’
He also noted that the speaker was elected as the
representative of the “generality of Nigerians” and
not necessarily because he belonged to a
particular political party.
On the views of some “commentators” that
Tambuwal should have vacated his office by
virtue of the provision of Section 68(1)(g) of the
constitution, he replied that the matter was still
awaiting judicial decision.
Ogene added, “It is common knowledge that
following the defection of 37 members of the
House in December 2013, from the PDP to APC,
there has been multiple court cases on the
matter, thus rendering it subjudice to discuss any
likely outcome.
“Everyone is thus enjoined to await the final
judicial pronouncement on the issue of defection,
which has afflicted virtually all political parties in
the land.”
He warned the PDP against interfering with the
lawmakers’ “privilege” and constitutionally-
guaranteed freedom to choose their leaders.
Ogene stated, “Additionally, Order 1, Rule 1 (2) of
the Standing Orders of the House of
Representatives states: ‘ In all cases not provided
for hereinafter, or by sectional or other Orders,
precedents or practices of the House, the House
shall by resolution regulate its procedure.’
“It is in the light of the foregoing that the House
wishes to appeal to those who seek to regulate its
procedure from outside its hallowed chambers to
have a rethink, as the nation’s Constitution, the
Standing Orders of the House and precedent – as
in the Speakership of the late Edwin Ume-Ezeoke
in the Second Republic on a minority platform –
have all provided answers to what would have
otherwise been a knotty political issue.”
But as Ogene spoke, the PDP through its National
Vice-Chairman of the party in the South-South, Dr.
Cairo Ojougboh, vowed to do everything within
its powers to regain the speakership of the
House.
Ojougboh told journalists at the national
headquarters of the party in Abuja that there was
no way Tambuwal and other defectors from the
party would be allowed to go away with the
party’s mandate.
He said, “PDP is a very disciplined party. If you
come and steal in the PDP and use the PDP to
elevate yourself and get into office when the time
comes, God will get you out like the issue of
Tambuwal.
“You can see how God has exposed him. PDP will
do everything within the law to regain its seat and
that is what we are going to do in Edo and Rivers
states as well. We are going back to the South-
South to regain our seats.”