The election of a new Chairman of the Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF) to replace incumbent Chairman and Governor of Rivers State, Rotimi Ameachi ended in a deadlock yesterday, forcing the forum to shift the election till May this year.
A communiqué issued at the end of the meeting and read Governor Amaechi said: “We the governors of the 36 states of the Federal Republic of Nigeria at our third meeting of the year held today (yesterday) Monday, February 25, 2013 at the Rivers State Governor’s Lodge, Abuja, deliberated over a number of issues and resolved as follows:
“Members reviewed the affairs of the forum in the past 21 months detailing activities, achievements and challenges experienced during the period.
“After exhaustive deliberation of the issues regarding filling vacant positions, the Forum resolved that election in this regard be postponed until May when the chairman’s initial two-year tenure will expire.”
After a meeting of the Peoples Democratic Party’s newly formed Governors Forum led by Governor Akpabio, during which 19 out of 22 governors attended, some governors developed cold feet and backed down when the issues of election came up.
It was gathered yesterday that the Presidency had infiltrated the ranks of the governors and had broken their resolve to rally around Governor Amaechi.
The expected showdown in the battle for the leadership of the NGF turned into an anti-climax, yesterday. At the end of a meeting that lasted about four hours, the governors resolved to reschedule the elections to May just ahead of the end of the tenure of incumbent chairman, Amaechi.
Yesterday’s decision was the result of intrigues and power play that brought Amaechi in direct conflict with the assumed interests of President Goodluck Jonathan, whose close associates, it was learnt, were directly deployed in mobilizing support for Governor Ibrahim Shema of Katsina State who had been selected as the choice candidate of the Villa to replace Governor Amaechi, regarded as hostile to the Villa.
It was learnt last night that Governor Babangida Aliyu questioned the rationale for setting up a PDP Governors Forum when it was the party that set up the NGF in the first place.
He was allegedly shouted down by Governor Akpabio, and this resulted in a shouting match between the duo.
Normally reliable sources disclosed, last night, that ahead of the expected showdown, powers at the highest levels in Aso Rock were directly deployed in the campaigns that meant each governor was contacted individually. The governors were reportedly told that Amaechi had declared war against President Jonathan and the governors should not empower him.
In some cases, some governors were shown video recordings of Amaechi’s alleged threats to unseat the president. It was also learnt that recordings of events where Amaechi said hostile things against the president were given to the governors.
Sources said that the campaign broke Ameachi’s support, as some governors who had in past lined up behind Ameachi backed out; and even then, it was certain the election would run into a deadlock.
