At the 67th meeting of the National Executive Committee, NEC, of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, last Thursday, it reviewed its woeful electoral fortunes in the last general elections, adopted Senator Ike Ekweremadu-led Post Election Review Committee report as it defined a new strategy to recapture power. SAMUEL OGIDAN reports
It has always be the tradition of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to hold its Board of Trustees (BOT) and Caucus meetings a day, or days before its National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting. And most of the BOT and Caucus meetings were held in the Presidential Villa, Abuja, when the party was in government or in a secluded area, away from public glare. The NEC meeting of the PDP, it was observed were just formalities, as decisions were already taken at the BOT and Caucus meetings, only for the decisions to be ratified at the NEC meetings.
However, last Thursday, the PDP broke this tradition and held its BOT meeting a few hours before the NEC meeting. And not only did it puncture its tradition, it held the meeting at the party's national secretariat; something that has never happened in the 16 years the PDP was in power.
Why PDP broke its old tradition could be traced to the statement of the party acting National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus, when he said last Thursday that, "Our party has witnessed challenging times after our disappointing loss in the last elections. We moved from pain, despair, soul- searching and
Now by the grace of the Almighty God, we have started the process of re-building confidence in ourselves for a brighter future for the party.
"All we need is to be focused at this time and seek the co-operation of all to reposition it for greater heights. There is therefore the need to become more focused and united in order to be effective in our pursuits. A sick man needs to see a good doctor for treatment, whether he likes the idea or not."
The BOT meeting, which preceded the NEC meeting, it was gathered, witnessed a serious drama, as the Northern Caucus moved for the removal of the acting Chairman of BOT, Haliru Bello, who was not at the meeting. It was the former governor of Akwa-Ibom State and Senate Minority Leader, Godswill Akpabio, according to an insider that saved the day, with the excuse that you do not remove somebody in his absence.
Meanwhile, former President Goodluck Jonathan and his deputy, Namadi Sambo were conspicuously absent from both meetings, a case some described as former President Olusegun Obasanjo's formula. It could be recalled that Obasanjo never attend PDP meetings after the expiration of his tenure. But The AUTHORITY checks revealed that Jonathan was absent because of the death of former governor of Bayelsa State, Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, who died on the 10th of October. And the absence of Sambo, it was learnt was because of his medical treatment abroad.
The Thursday NEC meeting was the first since the party lost the 2015 general elections, and its performance has been a subject of debate in the nation political hemisphere. While some called for the restructuring of the party leadership, others called for the overhauling of the party and if possible, changing of its name and logo. But, still, others said the present leadership should be sacked, with the excuse that it led the party to woeful and shameful outing in the 2015 general elections.
Part VII Section 31(4) of the party Constitution as amended in 2012 said "the National Executive Committee shall meet at least once in every quarter at the instance of the national chairman or at the request of two-third of its membership, who shall notify the chairman at least seven days prior to the meeting; and an emergency meeting may be summoned by the national chairman, having regard to all the circumstances of the agenda."
Sub-section (5) added that "the quorum of the National Executive Committee shall be two-third of the membership drawn from at least two-third of the zones in the federation, and a simple majority shall pass any motion." The party has, since the days of Bamanga Tukur as national chairman, subverted this portion of the Constitution, without due regard to the effect such action portended to the party and its members.
Tukur, it was gathered refused to call for NEC meeting because of the fear of being removed as the national chairman. Adamu Mu'azu on the other hand, performed better in terms of NEC meetings. For the few months he was the chairman, he held NEC meetings more than three times. However, on Thursday's NEC meeting, which the party described as a soul searching meeting witnessed the presence of PDP stakeholders with the resolutions to put the party on the right track in preparation for 2019 general elections.
The acting National Chairman, Secondus had said that the resignation of Mu'azu and Tony Anenih as BOT Chairman were parts of the soul searching for the survival of the party. "Immediately I took over as the acting national chairman, the NWC inaugurated the Ike Ekweremadu-led Post-Election Review Committee to undertake a comprehensive evaluation of the problems of the party with a view to making recommendations for moving the party forward.
"In our drive to revive the party after the elections, the
National Secretariat in conjunction with the PDP Caucus at the National Assembly organised a Retreat in Port Harcourt for our legislators," Secondus said.
Speaking on the roadmap for the party, the acting National Chairman said, "we have come to a critical juncture in the life of our dear party and the NWC under my leadership is determined to drive the process of re-invention that would ultimately return the party's lost glory. Against this background, we have adopted the recommendations of the Ike Ekweremadu Committee as a veritable road map for this process of rejuvenation and we call on all to give it their support."
"There are far reaching recommendations that touch on the soul of the party and her potential to re-invent itself. The highlights are as follows:
1. Sanctity of the zoning principle of the Party
2. Biometric Membership Registration
3. Introduction of Direct Primaries (to guarantee internal democracy)."
He added that, "The zoning principle enshrined in our Constitution is another fundamental element to be pursued in this reform roadmap. In accordance with the recommendation of the Committee, we have made a pronouncement that the Party's Presidential Candidate would be zoned to Northern
Nigeria for the 2019 general elections.
"The NWC believes that a thorough implementation of the Roadmap is the
Panacea to the challenges confronting the Party. Now that the Report is before NEC, the process of consultation has started.
"The recommendation of our elders in the BOT for the party to hold a national conference as soon as feasible to continue in our efforts to foster reconciliation and ensure adequate consultations as we move forward. All we need is focus at this time and the co-operation of all to reposition it for greater heights."
In its communiqué, the NEC at the end of its 67th meeting reassured on the repositioning of the party to regain its preeminence in the polity and return to power at the center come 2019.
Part of the recommendations read: "After thorough consideration of the report of the Senator Ike Ekweremadu-led Post Election Review Committee, the NEC resolved to adopt the recommendations of the Post-Election Review Committee with amendments.
"Approved the recommendation of the Post-Election Review Committee that the party should seek its 2019 presidential candidate from the North of Nigeria to enhance its electoral chances.
"Approved the biometric registration of members nationwide; approved that the party will support and fight for our candidates in the forthcoming governorship elections in Kogi and Bayelsa states.
"Assures that the PDP will continue to ensure credible, issue-based opposition as well as strict adherence to democratic tenets and the supremacy of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria."
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