Adamawa PDP, Power Game & The People
By: Edward Wabundani
Really, bad habits take time before they are forgotten. That was why I personally found it difficult to trust the National Chairman of the PDP Vincent Ogbulafor when he declared that the current leadership of the party will do away with imposition of candidates at various elections. The objective he explained at a forum within the first month of his selection sorry election, is to ensure that the electorate are given true representatives as well as to avoid internal strife among members of the party acclaimed to be the largest political party on the African continent.
But unfortunately within the same year, imposition of candidates especially at the third tier of government across PDP controlled states became the order of the day. The Ogbulafor led National Working and the National Executive Committees had equally chosen to undermine the collective wishes and aspirations of their party faithfuls. This they perfected by way of ignoring complaints and petitions sent to the National Secretariat of the party against other elected officials. Issues of factionlisation of the party and lopsidedness in membership of state officials fail on deaf ears of the present PDP leadership both at the National and state levels of the party
The cases had earlier reared their ugly heads during the dark days of the Obasanjo era. The party is worse for it under the present leadership. And it appears the principles of true democracy shall continue to stand on its head in the PDP states for sometime to come.
The crises that engulfed the ruling party in Adamawa for example came into being immediately, after Murtala Nyako was handpicked to fly the PDP ticket as governor. The impression he gave the party supporters and stake-holders even ahead of the 2008 governorship re-run election, was that he would heal the wounds and restructure the party immediately on assumption of office. This is barely 2 years after. But when it seemed there was no hope in sight when party structure at the state level remained with glaring imbalances, some stakeholders indicated their dislike for their continued domination and suppression, moreso that most of them including the governor were equal joiners in the PDP. The aggrieved party loyalists used the forum of stakeholders meeting severally, advising the governor and the leadership of the party in state on the desirability of reconstituting the state Exco. The issue had attracted very strong exchanges between the governor and the proponents of change at different fora. This problem of insensitivity on the party of Murtala Nyako has continued to threaten the soul of the party. No wonder, the governor and his supporters in Abuja, do not seem to have a grip of the party issues in Yola. And they will never have.
You can recall that last September, I wrote under the caption “Adamawa: PDP’s Fledgling Democracy” and was published in LEADERSHIP of 15/9/08. In it, I pinpointed some of the party’s lapses. I was called all sorts of names. I will never renege, in as much as my views tally with that of the majority. As stated in that write-up, part of the governor’s problem lies with his regimented military background. Secondly, he did not work for the office he is currently occupying, hence he will never respect the wishes of the people he claims to govern. His disobedience to court order restraining the Mijinyawa Kugama-led state exco of PDP from parading itself as such, dated 7/3/08 vide suit No.ADSY/4/2008 will continue to ruffle his over bloated ego. The national leadership of the party too will have to bear the same brunt for turning deaf ears to the happenings in the party.
In a memo addressed to the National Chairman on 28/11/08 by the aggrieved party members, a copy of which is in my custody, some of the reasons advanced for the removal from office of the state chairman of the party are: gross constitutional breaches in handling party matters, exclusion and marginalization of people perceived as political enemies, manipulation of local government council party primaries for his stooges and promoting perpetual state of distrust between the state party exco and other stakeholders.
Rather than addressing the issues raised, Mr. Kugama under the cover of his elder brother from L. G of Mayobelwa, a fellow Fulani who is also the state governor went on state T.V and Radio calling the aggrieved members all sorts of names. The national secretariat was accordingly notified through a letter with Ref No. ADS/PDP/104/1237/008 dated 20/10/08. They have remained quiet as if nothing has happened.
The situation has pitched most stakeholders against the ruling party and government. This had resulted in the government taking its pound of flesh in a manner of speaking on individual communities perceived as recalcitrant and unfavourable to the state government policies. One of which is the imposition of candidates in last year’s fiasco local government primary election.
Hong local government among the 21 councils was where the outcry over imposition of candidates appeared most vociferous. The allegation then was that Senator Jibril Aminu and his godson Minister of state Dr Aliyu Idi Hong collaborated and imposed the latter’s close relation as the flag bearer of the PDP chairmanship. Though the minister’s boys who share the crumbs from his table were happy over the move, yet over 99% of members of the community rejected the idea. And up till the time you are reading this piece, Hong L. G is administered by the councils Head of Service, wile others had gone to the polls and chose their accepted representatives. Both the government and by implication the Minister and his godfather’s ego seemed to have been bruised by the act and they would normally look for scapegoats on whom to vent their anger.
It is against this background that the government in its bid to render the area politically irrelevant and desolate, relocated the State Radio Booster Station established in Hong by the Abubakar Barde regime since 1982. Also, the State’s only College of Education situated in the area in 1980, has been closed down on the state government’s directive since mid February this year. The allegation is that the closure is a grand design preparatory to its relocation to the governor’s local government in Mayobelwa within the second quarter of the year. Some Electric Transformers supplied to some communities by the Boni Haruna regime are also being targetted for removal as part of the plot to disenchant the electorate from the area. As if that is not enough, the two-some politicians were alleged to have superintended over the removal of some sons and daughters of the community from strategic office and political appointments from last year to date, using the same illogical and selfish reasons. These episodes have polarized especially the political class in the area, who strategically and collectively played a vital role in ensuring victory for the PDP government in the state in 2007.
To worsen the situation, the junior Minister who hails from the area and the Senator representing Central Zone, have recorded no legacy to their credit so far. The people are miffed that after spending a number of years as the people’s representative, both had only achieved the primitive accumulation of personal wealth at the detriment of their constituent. If anything, they had instead vitiated the legacies of development and peaceful co-existence initiated by other politicians in the past.
The fact that nothing lasts forever, should serve as the peoples consolation in all these. Let these politicians continue to buff, puff, rake and even throw tantrums and be shifty to survive the approaching volcanic end to their reign of falsehood and selfishness. There is no doubt the ground under their seat will soon cave in when there are no more lies to tell, especially now that a more democratic and transparent method of election and not the selection process that brought them to power is just around the corner.
Edward Wabundani, on a Special Assignment in Yola, can be reached on quiveer@yahoo.com
