PDP’s pursuit of internal discipline
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| PDP National Chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur |
At inception in 1998, the Peoples Democratic Party attracted a motley crowd of individuals from different backgrounds and ideological persuasions who were united in their quest for power.
Some argue that these individuals could not disguise their desire for power so much so that they reflected it in the party’s slogan which has over the years transformed from “power to the people” to simply, “power.”
The party has been in power at the centre since democracy returned in May 29, 1999. It has so far produced three Presidents: Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, Alhaji Umaru Yar’ Adua and incumbent President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan
Each of them had at various times sought effective control of the party machinery to advance their positions in the power game. Obasanjo has so far remained unequalled in this area. He mastered the art of whipping party members into line even if it meant looking the other way when a sitting governor was abducted or when anti-graft agencies were unleashed on governors considered disloyal.
Strong-arm tactics such as the forced resignation of party chairmen and the imposition of a state of emergency was commonplace. In certain instances, contrived impeachments of sitting governors without prejudice to pronouncements of the courts also featured while he held sway.
Virtually all arms of government felt the weight of his might. He had running battles with the leadership of the two chambers of the National Assembly. He stands accused of engineering the removal and replacement of no fewer than three out of the five Presidents of the Senate, for standing up to him on issues of public interest.
His handpicked successor, Umaru Yar’Adua, perhaps did not stay long enough to prove his mettle in this area. He battled health challenges until he died. The succession battle which raged during his ill health and after his demise; dealt a further blow to the fragile cohesion party members could lay claim to. After the bitter party primaries which produced Goodluck Jonathan as flag bearer, the party finds itself gasping for breath each time elections are near.
From the outset of the current administration, it became clear that party discipline was going to be a major challenge. Following what political pundits describe as the collapse of the party’s zoning arrangement, party loyalists picked and chose which directive to comply with. After the 2011 election elections adjudged the most credible, free and fair in recent memory was won and lost, the sharing of the spoils of victory became the first litmus test for the party leadership.
An attempt by the party to revive the zoning arrangement with the distribution of principal offices at the National Assembly failed in the House of Representatives. Despite threats of sanctions, party loyalists ignored the party leadership’s directive to endorse Mrs. Adeola Akande as Speaker of the House; they rallied round their opposition colleagues to vote in Aminu Tambuwal who was their choice for the job. Since then, the most vocal voice of opposition to some government policies have come from PDP members of the House.
Perhaps the most potent threat to the party’s claim to being a cohesive political force is the challenge coming from the influential Nigerian Governors’ Forum.
Opposition party governors under the platform of the newly formed All Progressives Congress took a step that put the Jonathan-led PDP administration on the spot. They paid a visit to the troubled city of Maiduguri, the Borno State capital, a feat which the President was unable to achieve since the Boko Haram insurgency began.
As if that was not enough, the NGF which is made up of Nigerian governors drawn from across party lines and has Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Ameachi of the PDP at the helm has been a thorn in the flesh of the executive.
Amaechi’s leadership style which inspires confidence among his colleagues is something the PDP has grown uncomfortable with.
His activism especially during the debate on the Sovereign Wealth Fund, and disbursements from the Excess Crude Account attracted more than a passing interest by hawks within the Jonathan administration.
To make matters worse, he is remoured to have an ambition to team up with the Jigawa State Governor, Alhaji Sule Lamido to run for the Presidency in 2015.
A number of PDP governors were also having running battles with the Party’s National Chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, over the control of the party machinery at the state and federal levels.
The party’s National Working Committee is still polarised along the lines of those considered fiercely loyal to the President and the party’s National Chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur on one hand and those who are still tied to the apron strings of their state governors, at whose pleasure they got into office on the other.
Pundits posit that strategists both within the party and the Presidency went to work to check what they feared could mark the beginning of the waning of the powers of the President and his number one supporter within the party in the affairs of “Africa’s largest party.”
Although President Jonathan is yet to declare his interest in the race, there are signs that he is most likely to run. Considering the growing influence of governors in the running of political parties, the party, some say the Presidency, decided it was time to rein in its governors.
The return of Chief Tony Anenih, a well-known PDP strategist popularly called Mr. Fix It, as Chairman of the party’s Board of Trustees put to rest speculations about the President’s nay to the party’s desire to compel members’ obedience.
No sooner had he assumed office than the plan became public knowledge, a meeting of some of the President’s close associates and PDP governors was promptly convened and the formation of the PDP governors’ Forum announced. The Akwa Ibom State Governor, Godswill Akpabio, a vocal member of the NGF whose closeness to Jonathan is considered legendry, was made chairman.
Proponents of the new group argue that it was long overdue since other political parties and even sections of the country have similar platforms to articulate their policies and perform peer review functions based on their party ideology.
The choice of Akpabio did not surprise many because apart from his closeness to the President, he is considered a “pound for pound” match for Amaechi in the struggle for the hearts and minds of the governors especially those from the South South.
Akpabio was one of the few governors who spoke out during the power tussle between aides of the late President Yar’Adua, and then Vice President Goodluck Jonathan, at the height of the former’s health challenge.
He was also on hand to lead others to ensure the PDP Presidential ticket went to Jonathan who was serving out the term of his predecessor.
Special Adviser to the President on Political Matters, Ahmed Gulak, took time off to explain why the party decided to create the Akpabio-led PDPGF.
He said in an interview, “Nobody should pretend that we are happy with the leadership of the Nigerian Governors Forum. We are not happy because of their attitude, because of their refusal to really explore the mechanism within the party.
“We believe that as Chairman of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum and as a PDP governor and member of the PDP, Amaechi should subject himself to the supremacy of the party and the leadership of the party.
“The PDP as a party has decided to have its own Governors Forum, why do we have the ACN governors’ forum for example? The ACN governors though very few in number, meet from time to time to discuss their party, to discuss their common challenges and aspirations. Why should people lose sleep because the PDP has decided to form its governors’ forum?”
PDP insiders equally hail the formation of the forum as a good strategy to give a sense of direction to governors on the party’s platform. However, opponents argue that it would deepen the rift between governors and the President. There are already speculations that some of them are considering other options including joining the yet to be registered APC.
In an attempt to give the public the notion that all is well, Olisa Metuh, PDP’s National Publicity Secretary said there was no rivalry between the NGF and the PDPGF. According to him, the two bodies will complement each other.
He said, “Governor Amaechi is a leader who complains about what he thinks can cause problems in the party and he helps to solve them. Governor Akpabio is a humane and passionate person. He is passionate about the party and its members and the two of them complement each other.”
Category: AFRICA, PDP’s pursuit of internal discipline
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