Kwande Panel: Govt Scribe Berates ANPP
From Okon Bassey in Port Harcourt
The refusal of some leaders of the All Nigeria Peoples Party, ANPP, in Benue State, to appear before the Kwande/Ukum Judicial Commission has been described as a confirmation that the ANPP is lawless and undemocratic organisation.
Chief Press Secretary to the Benue state Governor, Mr. Tahav Agerzua, made the observation on the heels of an interview granted by Senator Daniel Saror, and published in a national daily.
According to the publication, Senator Saror, had in an interview, said ANPP members do not believe in the Commission because those who set it up are neck deep in the Kwande crises so they cannot be good judges in their own case.
But Agerzua, in a statement, dismissed the claim saying nothing could be further from the truth.
He denied the involvement of the state government in the Kwande/Ukum political crises, which he said, were precipitated by the ANPP in the affected areas.
Mr. Agerzua said the decision of some leaders of that party not to take part in peace meetings and to embrace dialogue as conflict resolution strategies indicates that such leaders sponsor, maintain, sustain and benefit from a breach of the peace.
The Chief Press Secretary said by setting up the Commission, the Governor has discharged his constitutional responsibility and employed a democratic initiative in finding a lasting solution to a lingering problem.
Mr. Agerzua noted that the judiciary is an independent arm of government, which has demonstrated its impartiality in adjudicating on disputes in the state times without number, therefore, rendering the allegation of bias untenable and idle.
On the claim that the Commission is a PDP affair, the Chief Press Secretary wondered why the ANPP leaders would rather prefer to rely on the Senate and its committee that is PDP dominated while shunning a Commission composed of professional jurists of repute.
He said if the ANPP leaders were conversant with history they would have learned from the example of Fidel Castro of Cuba who turned a state trial into a major political advantage in 1956.
The spokesman stated that it is noteworthy that while the ANPP always preferred the violent option, the PDP has always upheld democratic norms.
He cited the reaction of the two parties to recent court rulings, pointing out that while ANPP thugs went on rampage in Adikpo to protest the High Court ruling there, the PDP preferred to appeal against the judgment of a Makurdi election tribunal.
Mr. Agerzua also refuted claims that the Commission was a PDP affair noting that members of the Alliance for Democracy, the United Nigeria Peoples Party, traditional rulers, civil servants, and non-partisan members of the public, including the Igbo community have submitted memoranda to the Commission.
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