The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) could not take a conclusive stand yesterday on the feud between President Olusegun Obasanjo and the national Chairman of the party, Chief Audu Ogbeh, just as the party’s caucus meeting continued through the night.
The National Working Committee (NWC) of the party, charged with the responsibility of investigating and taking disciplinary actions against erring members, met yesterday at the national headquarters of the party in Abuja, but failed to take a categorical position on the feud due to conflict of loyalty.
The NWC however upturned the suspension order slammed on the Chairman, Board of Trustees of the party, Chief Tony Anenih, along with Dr Sam Ogbemudia, the chairman of the Edo State branch of the PDP and the Edo north leader, Mr Solomon Aguele and Chief Bruno Oshiopekhai, respectively.
The suspension was allegedly sponsored by the Edo State Governor, Chief Lucky Igbinedion, whose faction of the party fell out with Anenih’s faction and the two have been at daggers’ drawn.
At the close of yeste-rday’s 19-member NWC meeting, attended by the national Chairman, Chief Audu Ogbeh, the national Secretary, Chief Vincent Ogbulafor, two deputy national chairmen, six national vice chairmen, the women and youth leaders, among other members, there was no comment on the matter, but Daily Trust investigations revealed that the party was divided over the issue.
Some were in support of the letter written by Ogbeh, which was believed to be a bitter truth on the state of the nation which must be corre-cted to halt the slide to ana-rchy, while those in support of Obasanjo believed that Ogbeh should not have run what they regarded as a scathing comment about the president.
The division, it was gathered, will strongly characterise the meeting of the larger national caucus of the party billed to hold yesterday in Abuja at night. The natio-nal caucus, a smaller but more influential group, consi-sting of the president, the vice president, the national chairman, the board of trustees’ chairman of the PDP and a few others, began meeting at about 10 p.m. at the Presid-ential Villa, Abuja, and feelers are that another sharp division might also trail the meeting. The national Secretary of the party, Chief Vincent Ogb-ulafor, refused to comment when contacted by newsmen at the end of the NWC meeting, but Daily Trust reliably gathered that Ogbeh stands by the letter he sent to the president and will rather resign his appointment than giving in to pressures that are inimical to the peace and progress of the country.
The national youth lea-der, Malam Farouk Bibi Far-ouk, also declined to speak to the press.
He said however that the issues raised by Ogbeh and the response by Obasanjo should have been top party’s secrets, and that it was a mistake for them to have made it public.
“The amount of intell-igence and ingenuity of our leaders should have been diverted for something good for the country,” he said.
A statement yesterday by the national Publicity Sectary of the PDP, Barrister Venatius Ikem, said the suspension of Tony Anenih and others by the Edo State branch of the PDP was null and void, ad-ding that the NWC recognises only the Edo State executive committee headed by the suspended Chief Sol-omon Aguele.
“Disciplinary measures against national officers, such as the chairman of the board of trustees, are clearly beyond the powers of state executive committee. Pronouncements of suspensions or expulsions on such officers can only be valid if they are carried out by the National Executive Committee or the national convention. The said suspension is therefore ultra vires, null and void,” the statement said.
The disputed relocation of the state secretariat of the party to No 24, Uselu, Lagos Road, Benin City, by the reco-gnised state exco, the state-ment said, was duly comm-unicated to the national secr-etariat which upholds it as legitimate.
“Finally, the NWC wishes to warn all party members working at cross purposes with the recognised party organs in Edo State to desist from such actions or face the appropriate disciplinary actions,” the statement said. |
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