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Etiebet back as ANPP chairman
NDIDI OKAFOR,
Abuja
CRISIS
in the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) may be over as the party’s seven
governors and the Board of Trustees yesterday returned Chief Don Etiebet as
National Chairman.
They also discarded the opposition faction
of Lt. Gen. Jerry Useni.
Besides, the party dispelled speculations
that former military ruler, Gen. Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida was responsible for
the crisis in ANPP and absolved him of blame in the matter.
Speaking yesterday after an all night
(Saturday) meeting of the governors and the Board, Chairman of the party’s Board
of Trustees, Admiral Augustus Aikhomu told a news conference in Abuja that the
meeting resolved to retain the leadership of Chief Etiebet.
Aikhomu was flanked at the briefing by
Gov. Bukar Abba Ibrahim of Yobe State and ANPP National Secretary, Mallam Sani
el-Katazu.
Other resolutions he said include that the
Board of Trustees should meet immediately and look into the state of the party;
consider the situation in the party and look into grievances from all quarters
in accordance with the provisions of the constitution of the party; all organs
of the party are to remain intact in accordance with the national caucus
resolution of September 8, 2004 and are to continue to discharge their
constitutional duties without let or hindrance from any quarters.
Aikhomu said it was also resolved that the
next national caucus and National Executive Council (NEC) meetings are scheduled
to hold in Maiduguri, the Borno State Capital, on November 26 and 27, 2004.
On Gen. Babangida’s alleged meddling in
ANPP, Admiral Aikhomu said that "IBB has nothing to do with the family problem
we have in ANPP and all these rumours should be put to rest."
He said that the relationship between him
and IBB remained cordial, saying "we are friends, he called me, we spoke on
telephone and he asked me to go and represent him at a function recently."
Admiral Aikhomu said that even though both
of them belong to two different political parties, they still remained good
friends."
In his comments, the Gov. of Yobe State,
Alhaji Bukar Ibrahim, said the governors agreed with the resolutions and "there
is no voice of dissent but if anyone will say no now, we will rise up to the
occasion. But now we all agree with it."
The ANPP crisis came about when supporters
of Governor Attahiru Bafarawa of Sokoto State, who was suspended by the Chief
Etiebet executive, in turn announced the suspension of Etiebet and selected Gen.
Useni as acting chairman.
The Etiebet executive had earlier
suspended the national secretary, Mallam el-Katuzu over his alleged involvement
in a news magazine story that alleged that Etiebet received N300 million from
Aso Rock.
Governor Bafarawa’s suspension was lifted
the same day and Etiebet’s suspension by Bafarawa’s supporters was also supposed
to have been quashed but the Bafarawa group insisted that Etiebet must go,
leading to the impasse which has now been resolved by the Board of Trustees.
At the heart of the tussle, however, is said to be the
2007 presidential ticket of the party.
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