An attempt by the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur to wade into the crisis currently rocking the ruling party in his home State of Adamawa has backfired dramatically with President Goodluck Jonathan reading the riot act to Tukur; warning him to hands-off the crisis or face the consequences, Huhuonline.com has learnt from presidential sources in Aso Rock.
While Tukur’s attitude has seemingly been “I am the party leader, so send me your dues and shut the hell up,” the Presidency feels that Tukur has been undermining the President’s own efforts at resolving the crisis between the faction led by the former State party chairman, Minjiyawa Umar Kugama which has the support of the PDP National Working Committee (NWC) and the PDP governors including Adamawa Governor, Murtala Nyako; and the Joel Madaki-led faction backed by Tukur and the acting secretary general of the party, Barrister Onwe Solomon Onwe.
The crisis boiled over during elections for the PDP BoT chair causing considerable embarrassment to the President after the PDP Governors and the NWC broke ranks with the president, and threatened a vote of no confidence on Tukur. To which end, the President, on December 2012 set up a committee led by Governor Sule Lamido to resolve the factional crisis rocking the PDP in Adamawa State. And while the Lamido committee’s report was being awaited, Tukur and the acting National Secretary of the party, Barrister Onwe, sent a letter to INEC recognizing Joel Madaki as the substantive chairman of the PDP in Adamawa State.
Coming in the countdown to by-elections in Nasarawo/Binyeri State Constituency of Mayo-Belwa Local Government, Tukur’s action provoked the Kugama-led faction of the party, which yesterday commenced sales of forms to aspirants for the by-election. To make an already bad situation worse, the PDP national secretariat issued two different sets of forms for the by-election in the Adamawa State House of Assembly to both Governor Nyako and Joel Madaki. Amid the confusion, the Madaki led faction also went on air with public announcements asking aspirants to purchase forms at its secretariat.
A senior aide to the President told Huhuonline.com on conditions of anonymity that Jonathan was furious when members of the Sule Lamido committee informed him of Tukur’s letter to INEC recognizing the Madaki faction. Help matters when the President learnt that the letter was signed by Tukur and the acting national secretary without the knowledge of other NWC members.
According to the source, “when the President heard of it, he telephoned Tukur immediately and unleashed a tirade of invectives on the old man; demanding from Tukur why he wrote to INEC recognizing the Madaki’s faction without waiting for the Lamido Committee to submit its report.” Jonathan, the source said, warned Tukur to hands-off the PDP Adamawa crisis; and made it clear to Tukur that he was on his own.
“Tukur’s action is a slight on President Goodluck Jonathan’s commitment to resolve the Adamawa PDP crisis. This is one of the problems we want resolved but the national chairman is still causing more problems for the President by recognizing and sending the letter to INEC; the PDP governors supporting Governor Murtala Nyako would be incensed. That was why the governors said Tukur was the cause of the crisis in the party,” the source said.
Apart from being seen as biased in the Adamawa PDP crisis, the presidency is also at odds with Tukur over statements credited to him following the terror attack in his community in Ganye, Adamawa State. The PDP national chairman was quoted to have said after the attack: “This is evil opposing good; here are people who attacked mosques, churches, markets, banks, motor parks, police stations without minding who was there. Surely, our nation is under attack. It is not a question of PDP, ACN, CPC or any political party or any religion; the truth is that Nigeria is under attack. Therefore, all of us must come together and face this challenge.”
Tukur’s desperate appeal for a national response to the worsening insecurity in the country was interpreted to mean the President has dropped the ball and this did not sit well inside Aso Rock.
“What impression is the national chairman trying to create by calling on the opposition parties to join hands to tackle the insurgency in the country? Is he saying that the President can no longer handle the situation in the country? He has access to the President and if he feels strongly over any issue, he has access to make his views known and not these unhelpful comments.”
Meanwhile, INEC has fixed April 19 as deadline for the submission of names of candidates by political parties and May 11 for the by-election.
