•The plot thickens
•Gov keeps APGA, AD waiting
PResident Olusegun Obasanjo, National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dr. Ahmadu Ali and Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Chief Tony Anenih, have emerged as the formidable troika that will determine so many things in the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the build-up to the 2007 nominations for all offices, particularly, the presidency. With the benefit of hindsight- and with specific reference to the 2003 presidential primary on which even he (Obasanjo) suffered political treachery in the hands of Vice President Atiku Abubakar- and with their eyes on the 2007 ball, Obasanjo and Anenih had gradually moved and succeeded in dealing a strategic blow to the other camp in the party by removing Chief Audu Innocent Ogbeh as National Chairman and putting in his stead, their pre-determined candidate, Ali.
The emergence of Ali, who is trusted to be loyal to the end, is strategic to Obasanjo and Anenih’s political game plan for 2007: they are all out to control the party machinery with which they will install their loyalists in various offices and perhaps retire to their country homes as accomplished kingmakers.
For strategic effect, Anenih was confirmed by the Board of Trustees as its substantive Chairman on the eve of the meeting of the National Executive Committee (NEC), at which Ali’s choice by his North-Central zone was endorsed. Ali, a disciplined politician and a no-nonsense retired colonel, as believed, would combine effectively with Obasanjo and Anenih to “reposition” the party for 2007. The repositioning would be realized only to the extent that opposition forces within the party do not rear their heads. But the opposition elements had served notice that they were not going to be complacent and watch their positions assaulted endlessly. What would they do? And when would they launch their counter moves if they have the guts to do so?
The leadership of the party, under Ali, acting in concert with the Presidency, has already begun to juggle critical options at the national level, which is expected to draw out the opposition elements from their shells, so that they can set out in good time to make their counters.
The options that the party leadership is disposed to settling for are such that will alter the entire power configurations within the PDP. The process will, no doubt, be painful. It is expected, at the end of the day, that the party will not remain the same again. For instance, the expulsion, penultimate Thursday of Anambra State governor, Dr. Chris Nwabueze Ngige, is one of the critical options for which the party leadership has settled.
It is the crown capping of a series of organized attacks against the position of the governor by the camp of his estranged political godfather, Chief Chris Uba, who was also expelled by the party, although his expulsion does not amount to anything in tackling the lingering crises in Anambra State. Uba is believed to be the Presidency’s cannon fodder in the Anambra debacle. Finger of guilt had been pointed at the Presidency in the grand plot to oust Ngige as governor of Anambra State.
The Presidency had allegedly tried to use the party leadership to achieve its objective, but because the other camp with Ogbeh as its arrowhead in the party was sympathetic to Ngige, the party machinery was rendered ineffectual in dealing with him (Ngige).
This explains why Ogbeh was quickly taken out of the way. Ogbeh’s proclivity towards Ngige was made evident in his testimony before the Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola Panel of Inquiry into the Political Disturbances in Anambra State: the Panel, on page 82 of its report, said in reference to Ogbeh’s submission to it, thus: “National Chairman said that one day, Chief Uba came to report to him, that Dr. Ngige did not win election, that the victory was merely organized. The National Chairman said that he advised Chief Uba to take the matter to the Tribunal if he has facts.
He, however, wondered why a party man should say such a thing to his fellow member. The Committee was told (by Ogbeh) that since then, the party received more reports from Anambra State, especially between the 9th and 10th November, 2004, indicating that the life of Governor Ngige would be in danger if something was not done to avert it. He (Ogbeh) felt if the life of the Governor is terminated, it will be unfortunate and the image of the nation and that of the party will be tarnished. He said it was on this note that he wrote to Mr. President, informing him of this circumstance and requesting that something be done”.
There was no way in the calculations of the Presidency’s strategists that Ogbeh would have ensured the expulsion of Ngige from the party as easily as Ali had done. The report of the committee, which betrayed the position of Ogbeh on Ngige had already been leaked to Obasanjo and his men by members of the Committee who were all pro-Presidency. Ogbeh had been opposed to the removal of Ngige by extra-judicial means.
He was reported as having told the Oyinlola Committee that he knew Ngige was stubborn, that the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party could not act swiftly on the implementations of its decision due to interest groups, and that the party could not enforce discipline in Anambra State because the individuals involved were highly protected and therefore care had to be exercised.
The report said further: “In answer to a question on the way forward, the National Chairman said any of the parties that is aggrieved should not take law into their hands. He once again advised Chief Uba to go to Court to prove his claim. At the end, he said, the law should have its way. He advised against the removal of Governor Ngige by coercion, saying there must be a due process”.
The Oyinlola Panel had
specifically sounded Ogbeh out on the planned expulsion of Ngige. This is the panel’s statement on that: “On whether Governor Ngige should be expelled to pave way for peace, the National Chairman (Ogbeh) said that the party should go to Anamnbra State to read the mood of the people before embarking on such exercise”. Adopting Ogbeh’s position would have made the journey towards Ngige’s expulsion more tortuous.
Perhaps, the party would still have been on the matter. The party, apparently, did not take Ogbeh’s advice. The forces simply got Ogbeh out in a military fashion, and rammed through the NEC the report of the Oyinlola Panel that had hitherto become a subject of controversy between and among members as they considered the correctness cum implication of Ngige’s recommended expulsion and the mileage that could be achieved through genuine reconciliation. At the end of the day, the powers-that-be discountenanced the option of reconciliation and settled for expulsion.
By expelling Ngige, the new political lords and power brokers in the PDP have bared their fangs, succeeding, as it were, in testing the waters, to see how the polity would react.
So far, the reactions have been “limited” to the “propriety or otherwise” of the PDP’s action. If such “limited” response was all that could attend Ngige’s expulsion, then there are possibilities that the PDP leadership guard might be encouraged to give other erring governors the Ngige treatment. But last week, the new National Chairman, said, while inaugurating two committees to investigate allegations of corrupt practices against Governor Joshua Dariye of Plateau State and members of the NWC in their handling of the Anambra crises, that the expulsion of Ngige was a correct and decisive step open to the party in the circumstance.
Hear him: “It is with great pleasure that I welcome you to this brief ceremony designed to help find lasting solutions to some of the problems that have tended to negatively affect our great party. Just last week, we dealt with the lingering problems in Anambra. From the feedback we have got, the decisive steps we took have been well received by our teeming members and well-meaning Nigerians. The PDP helped bring about the current democratic experience. In doing so, we were convinced that good governance could only be a product of a visionary, purposeful and transparent leadership, which prizes dearly the feelings and well being of the governed. Having been received overwhelmingly by Nigerians and, in fact, the international community, the party cannot afford to shirk its responsibility of mid-wifing a new Nigeria of the people’s dream.
We must lead by example and practise what we preach. We must show our people that PDP is not only a vehicle for attaining power, but also a veritable instrument of development. It is against this backdrop that certain happenings around some of our public and party office holders must be a source of concern to the party”.
However, analysts were quick to ask what would be the implication(s) of Ngige’s expulsion beyond the critical option by the party apparatus to withdraw the platform from him. National Secretary of the party, Prince Vincent Ogbulafor, said that Ngige was now on his own, without party protection. Some other PDP leaders at the party’s National Headquarters where procedural effect was given to the “coup” against Ngige have been bandying arguments that Ngige should be made to vacate the seat of governor because the PDP platform with which he got into office has been withdrawn from him.
In their arguments, he (Ngige) is sitting on nothing, even if he is standing somewhere on the pedestal of independent candidacy, which is alien to the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Electoral Act 2002. Sunday Vanguard learnt that this is why the PDP, through its national scribe, had on March 10, 2005, formally notified the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of Ngige’s expulsion for its “necessary action”. The Commission’s “necessary action” has been interpreted in some circles as a subtle call by the PDP for a fresh election. But for a fresh election to hold in Anambra, the Election Petition Tribunal must have invalidated Ngige’s victory at the 2003 governorship poll. In fact, the entire legal process must have been completed to the disfavour of Ngige before a fresh poll can be conducted by INEC in the state.
What INEC can do in the circumstance is to continue to wait for the tribunal to make pronouncements that will necessitate a fresh poll. The PDP, on its part, can, in the present circumstance, set machinery in motion through its government at the centre to pull the necessary strings to invalidate Ngige’s victory; this will be possible only on two scores: if the Tribunal is malleable or if the evidence that Ngige did not really win the election is weighty enough. The party too will have to be part of the waiting game. There have been reports of overtures being made to Ngige by the National Chairman of All-Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA), Chief Chekwas Okorie, for him to join the party. APGA’s governorship candidate, Mr. Peter Obi, had taken Ngige to the tribunal. But there is crisis in APGA that has pitched Okorie’s camp against the camp of Victor Umeh who is said to be the godfather of Obi.
The Umeh camp enjoys the support of Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu. If Okorie succeeds in getting Ngige to APGA, will he be able to get Obi to withdraw his petition against Ngige? Would the Okorie leadership, which is recognized by the INEC move to expel Obi from the party if he does not withdraw his petition? Or has that (Obi’s suspension) been done already in the growing confusion that has become the lot of the party, so as to clear the coast for Ngige? Again, the waiting game by Ngige continues, as he deciphers the convoluted political developments around him.
Party's platform
Perhaps, if APGA had not been enmeshed in crisis, and the leaders and stakeholders had reached a compromise, Ngige would have by now coasted home to protection on the party’s platform. Why is he part of the waiting game in taking a decisive step forward by joining another party? Apart from APGA, Alliance for Democracy (AD) was reported to be wooing Ngige. He might have tarried awhile in taking such decision in the light of the PDP constitution, specifically Article 16 (C) (5), which states that: “A decision to expel a member of the Party whether an Office Holder or not, taken or confirmed by the National Executive Committee, shall become effective upon ratification by the National Convention, save that a member expelled shall cease to enjoy all privileges of membership until such ratification”.
Perhaps, he wants to take full benefit and advantage of this provision of the PDP constitution until his expulsion is ratified at the November/December 2005 National Convention of the party.
Sunday Vanguard gathered from the Ngige camp that he is not in a hurry to join any party. The Governor had served notice that he would go to court to challenge the “unconstitutional” steps taken by the NEC meeting to procure his expulsion. That action would be a distraction too many, having been in the tribunal already over the 2003 governorship election. But it is a worthwhile venture in this game of waiting for Godoth: waiting for mercy and salvation from the bowels of an awesome Presidency that has become his sworn adversary in the estimation of analysts.
The PDP is waiting to take over Ngige’s seat; APGA is waiting to assume the position; INEC is waiting to conduct election if the need arises; Ngige is hoping to keep his position. Are they all not waiting for Godoth? Indeed, the court action by Ngige would be hinged on the plank of Article 16 (C) (5) of the party constitution on the strength of which the Governor is claiming to be a bona-fide member of the party.
Going by the construct and spirit of that critical provision, and the dispassionate interpretation of it by the court, Ngige might just be able to carry on till the next National Convention as a governor of the PDP and, thereafter, can be on his way out completely from the party. If this scenario plays out, then Nigerians would be part of the waiting game as they watch the unfolding developments in Anambra; whether Ngige would be got out of the Government House, Awka eventually and when and how he would be got out; and who the next victim(s), among the state governors, would be. And talking about next victim(s), could watchers of the political developments in the PDP be waiting for Godoth? Perhaps, unlikely, as the indications are all there from Plateau through Edo to Abia.
