Politics
Tambuwal, Ishaku, Ortom Battle For PDP Gov’s Forum Chairmanship Position
With the tenure of the Bayelsa State Governor, Hon. Henry Seriake Dickson, ending soon, together with his chairmanship of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Governors’ Forum, the battle to succeed him has begun to gain momentum.
At least, three governors from the North are gearing up to contest the position, when it becomes vacant.
The occupant is expected to be a critical factor in the next presidential election in 2023.
The position of the PDP Governors’ Forum started with former Akwa Ibom State Governor, Godswill Akpabio in 2014, when a crisis of succession erupted in the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF), with then Governor Chibuike Amaechi of Rivers State and Governor Jonah Jang of Plateau State squaring up to each other.
Chairmanship of the PDP Governors Forum is rotated between the North and South. The immediate past governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose, had handed over to his colleague from Gombe State, Ibrahim Dankwambo, who at the expiration of his tenure handed over to the current chair, Dickson.
However, as Dickson is billed to bow out this February, the governor of Sokoto State, Aminu Tambuwal, his Benue State counterpart, Samuel Ortom, and the Taraba State governor, Darius Ishiaku, are said to be lobbying intensely to become the next chairman of the PDP governors.
Their aspiration is already generating tension, which is quite understandable, because the next chairman of the forum would either be a major factor in the 2023 presidential run or in serious consideration as the party’s standard-bearer. It is widely believed that there is a subtle understanding among key actors in the two leading political parties that the next president of the country would be chosen from former governors.
According to a source, which pleaded anonymity, the PDP Governors Forum chairman is seriously in contention, as the governors are believed to control the delegates and are also the major financiers of the party.
There are 15 governors currently elected on the platform of the party,
The forum, as a powerful bloc, is a formidable force in the party, especially for the second term governors, who still nurse future political ambitions. Wherever the governors throw their weight is almost always where the majority of the people head.
Tambuwal is the deputy chairman of NGF, the main umbrella body of the 36 governors in Nigeria.
The source told our source regarding Tambuwal, “If he becomes the next chairman of the PDP Governors’ Forum, coupled with the fact that he was Speaker of the House of Representatives for four years, then, he would be unstoppable in his presidential quest in 2023.
“This is why his alleged resolve to become the chairman of the PDP Governors’ Forum is causing some ripples among his colleagues. He is also going about his ambition discretely. PDP as a political party cannot intervene in who becomes the chair, but the party always has interest because of the enormous powers the forum usually enjoys.”
On the other hand, Ortom is not being taken seriously. He is a newcomer, who just defected from the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Although he was National Auditor of PDP from where he was appointed minister during the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan, before ending up as governor, the odds are not in his favour.
According to the source, “Ortom’s consideration in the race is basically because he is a second term governor from the North-central and the only PDP governor from the zone.”
Ishaku, on his part, is one of the second term governors of the PDP from the North-east and also a former minister during the administration of Jonathan. The source considered his aspiration critical, as former Vice President Atiku Abubakar is from the zone. But it is not clear if Atiku is nursing a presidential ambition ahead of 2023 or whether he would support Ishaku. However, many believe it might not be in Atiku’s interest for Tambuwal to emerge the next chairman of PDP governors’ forum.
“It is obvious both Atiku and Tambuwal still have their eyes on the presidential job,” the source explained, adding, “Whoever becomes the next chairman of the PDP governors is entirely the prerogative of the governors.
“But don’t rule out intervention from some politicians.”
On the role of the South-east governors, the source said, “They are qualified especially, the second term governors, but the rotation of the office of the chairmanship of the forum between the North and the South basically rules them out.
Politics
You Can’t Make Us Leave PDP, Lamido Responds To El-Rufai
Former Jigawa State Governor and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain, Sule Lamido, has dismissed a call by former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, urging opposition leaders to join the Social Democratic Party (SDP).
Mallam El-Rufai, who recently announced his defection from the All Progressives Congress (APC) to the SDP, made the call in an interview with BBC Hausa.
While he did not mention Alhaji Lamido by name, he invited key opposition figures, including Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi, Rotimi Amaechi, and Rauf Aregbesola, to join him in the SDP.
Responding in a separate BBC Hausa interview on yesterday, Alhaji Lamido dismissed the invitation as an insult, insisting that the PDP, which he helped build, laid the foundation for Mallam El-Rufai’s political career.
“The party we formed, the PDP, is the one that gave birth to El-Rufai.
“You’re not enough to make us leave the PDP,” Alhaji Lamido said.
He added, “He once said that there are no adults in Nigeria in politics, but now he is calling on us to join him in the SDP.”
The former governor also questioned Mallam El-Rufai’s motives for defecting from the APC to the SDP.
“He said he told President Buhari about his decision to leave the APC, but now he is saying that he is one of the adults in Nigerian politics,” Lamido stated.
The former governor argued that the PDP had not done anything to warrant his defection, emphasizing his long-standing loyalty.
“If I was going to leave the PDP, I would have done so in 2014 when the APC was formed,” he said.
The former governor also criticised Mallam El-Rufai’s leadership style, saying that leadership is not about anger or selfish ambition.
“Leadership is done with patience and vision, and doing things for the peace of the followers and the country as a whole,” Alhaji Lamido said.
Alhaji Lamido advised Mallam El-Rufai to put patriotism first instead of showing anger towards others, saying, “What should be done is to put patriotism first, instead of showing anger towards someone.”
He added, “The PDP has been working to rebuild its strength after losing the 2015 presidential election.”
Politics
Yakasai Insists On Northern Support For Tinubu
Elder statesman and First Republic politician, Alhaji Tanko Yakasai, has lauded Nigerians for their continued support and prayers for the success of President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
Speaking to reporters yesterday in Kano, Alhaji Yakasai held that the steady progress and concrete achievements recorded by the administration were a vindication of the trust reposed in them by Nigerians.
“From some of the reports I received, the prices of basic foodstuffs have been coming down. Unlike what it was before now, families can now afford to buy basic food items such as rice, beans, maize, sorghum, and other eatables needed to feed their homes,” he declared.
“I was also made to understand that the cost of petrol at filling stations has been coming down. In some places, I was told that they now sell petrol for about ?850 per litre instead of ?1,150 in the recent past. This is good for the cost of transportation and movement of Nigerians from place to place,” he stated.
The elder statesman, who supported the Tinubu-for-President project in 2023, urged Northerners to rally around the present administration while insisting that the North was not left out in the scheme of things under the current leadership, contrary to views being held in some quarters.
The former Adviser to President Shehu Shagari and one-time National Publicity Secretary of the Northern Elements Progressive Union (NEPU) also insisted that the administration’s best was yet to come, as it had lined up many developmental and people-friendly policies and programmes for the benefit of Nigerians and the North.
He enjoined Nigerians, especially the political class, to continue to contribute their quota to good governance through informed criticism and well-placed political engagements, all of which, he added, would strengthen the nation’s fledgling democracy and enrich the democratic process.
Alhaji Yakasai also used the occasion to extend his deepest condolences to the families of the late Chief Ayo Adebanjo and the late Chief Edwin Clark, as well as to the entire people of the South-West and South-South regions, over their irreplaceable losses.
He said that the passing of these two great and patriotic Nigerians, who happened to be his political associates and personal friends, was a big loss to all Nigerians while praying to Allah to forgive their sins and grant them eternal rest.
Politics
Speaker Felicitate Journalists As NUJ Clocks 70
Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Abbas Tajudeen, has called for better welfare and working conditions for Nigerian journalists.
The Speaker congratulated journalists on the 70th anniversary of their umbrella body, the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), saying the organisation has continued to stand the test of time.
In a congratulatory message signed by his special adviser on media and publicity, Musa Abdullahi Krishi, the Speaker asked journalists to continue to seek training, retraining, be more ethical, and development-orientated.
The Speaker said with the new trends in information and communication technology (ICT), journalists must continue to learn, unlearn, and relearn on their job.
He commended the Nigerian journalists for their immeasurable contributions to the country’s democracy and development, while holding the government and its officials accountable.
According to him, the media is called the fourth estate of the realm because its practitioners are critical stakeholders in society, who have enormous power and influence on the people.
Speaker Abbas expressed his belief that better journalists will make a better society, noting their watchdog role in the polity.
He said the House of Representatives was ready to welcome legislations that seek to promote the sanctity of journalism and enhance the capacity of journalists and media professionals as a whole.
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