PDP rejects Obasanjo’s bid to force Speaker out
By Yusuf Alli, Abuja 9 hours 32 minutes ago
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Former President Olusegun Obasanjo Former President Olusegun Obasanjo

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s bid to get Speaker Aminu Tambuwal and others to step down in 2013 has failed.

The Board of Trustees of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Tuesday night overruled Obasanjo.

Besides, they decided that Obasanjo’s proposal should not be part of the meeting’s resolution.

Although they rejected Obasanjo’s proposal, the trustees set up a seven-man panel to look into zoning and party discipline.

Some BOT members asked Obasanjo to put the PDP in the Southwest in order before making any demand for a higher stake for the zone.

It was gathered that President Goodluck Jonathan, who spoke briefly at the meeting, backed the decision of the majority.

Most BOT members were shocked by the address of the ex-President, which they felt could ignite a deeper crisis in PDP, it was learnt.

Sources at the meeting said Obasanjo had hardly ended his controversial address when some BOT members began to protest.

"All those who spoke condemned the speech, which they described as unexpected.

"They asked Obasanjo to exercise caution in making inflammatory remarks that could affect the rapprochement policy of President Jonathan."

A BOT member from the Northeast was quoted as saying: "The ex-President should not have made such a statement because the party cannot dictate to the House of Representatives what it should do.

"What does Obasanjo want to achieve by setting the South against the North again when the party is already trying to resolve the stalemate?"

Another BOT member from the Northwest said:

"For some of us who stood for change during the April general elections and voted for Jonathan, the people of the North have ganged up against us.

"For us to decide here and ask Tambuwal and others to step down will lead to fresh anger against the administration of Jonathan. We should not go back again."

A member from the Southeast said: "We asked Obasanjo whether it is the fault of anybody that the PDP lost completely in the Southwest during the last election.

"Our position is that the ex-President should go back to the drawing board in the Southwest and put PDP in good shape to be able to win at the poll.

"The electoral loss of the PDP in the Southwest may take the next 20 years to recover. So, instead of concentrating on recovery, he is asking some principal officers of the House of Representatives to step down."

An official of the BOT said: "At the end, members overruled Obasanjo and even decided that the recommendation of the ex-President should not be part of the resolutions of the session.

"I can tell you that 99 per cent of members of the BOT rejected Obasanjo’s recommendation."

Asked of the disposition of the President, the official said: "Jonathan accepted the wish of the majority."

It was also gathered that while some BOT members supported November for the National Convention of the party, the National Working Committee members wanted March.

An NWC member said: "We may table the guidelines for our National Convention before the National Executive Committee on Thursday (today). We initially thought that the ward congresses should start on September 3 but we have shifted that to February 2012.

"But the National Convention has been tentatively scheduled for March 2012.

"It is left to NEC to ratify the convention guidelines."

Former Vice -President Atiku Abubakar yesterday said ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo’s warning on the demise of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) if zoning is not revisited is sheer display of hypocrisy.

Abubakar took a swipe at Obasanjo in a statement in Abuja against the backdrop of the ex-President’s call on Speaker Aminu Tambuwal and his Deputy Emeka Ihedioha to resign as a precondition for reviving zoning.

The former Vice-President described the call as an insult on the intelligence of Nigerians.

Abubakar recalled that Obasanjo was the biggest beneficiary of zoning and rotation of power, which made him to occupy the presidential seat for eight years.

Abubakar said: "It is surprising that former President Obasanjo is now posturing as the apostle of zoning when indeed, he was the one who did everything to destroy that equitable means of power sharing among all sections of Nigerian.

"Obasanjo’s arbitrariness and despotism were largely responsible for the destruction of the noble objectives of zoning," Abubakar said rather than taking responsibility for ruining the party in the Southwest, the former President is now deceiving Nigerians on the issue.

"It is on record that Obasanjo has no respect for the PDP constitution. He remains the problem in the PDP and governance in the country by trying to control every President he deems to have installed in power: something he could not have tolerated from others while he was in power.

"Obasanjo has no power to determine the fate of the Speaker and his Deputy, which is absolutely the responsibility of the House members who voted them freely into office."

another mumu. good for him

The centre can longer holds. They will crumble and fall by the Grace of God.

Obasanjo should retire with his stolen loot.