Niger Delta Leader, Clark, Accuses PDP Of Foisting Another Northerner As Presidential Candidate
The Leader of Southern Middle Belt Leaders Forum and the leader of the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), Chief Edwin Clark has accused the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) of foisting another Northerner, Atiku Abubakar on the party for the 2023 Presidential election.
In a statement today, May 31, Clark blamed virtually everybody, including the PDP national chairman, Senator Iyorchia Ayu; Governor Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State and others for the emergence of another Northern to be the party’s flag bearer.
He began by asking Senator Ayu to resign from office over the conduct of the national convention of the party, even as he expressed worry over the outrageous financial inducements of delegates and the cynical dollarization of the electoral process.
“Even worse, in the extreme, was the action of the national chairman of PDP, Senator Iyorchia Ayu, in his open visit to Governor Tambuwal to congratulate and hail him, in his words, as “the hero of the convention”. This clearly reveals his partiality and predilection in the processes leading to the baffling conclusion of the PDP presidential primary.
“His undignified and parochial conduct, to please his northern principals, is not only a big disgrace to the office he occupies but, also, a sad display of lewd subservience to the political subjugation of one ethnic group, in a diverse country like Nigeria.
“We had earlier suspected that he was in favour of a northern candidate, when on the day of his inauguration as national chairman, last year, he, needlessly, said during his speech, that he would resign if a Northerner emerged as the presidential candidate of the party.
“Senator Ayu has failed to realize that what we are fighting for affects all minorities in Nigeria. The Southern Nigeria relationship with the Middle Belt is well established, dating back to the First Republic, during the period of Dr. J. S. Tarka, from today’s Benue State, a founding member of the then, United Middle Belt Congress, and the strong alliance with Chief Obafemi Awolowo’s Action Group. The relationship subsisted during the Second Republic, when the Minorities of the South and the minorities of the North combined to fight for a common course; the inclusion, and full participation of all Minorities in the politics and governance of the country, of which I was the leader.
“Senator Iyorchia Ayu’s appalling, thoughtless and unpatriotic public conduct bears grave negative consequences. He should, therefore, no longer consider himself fit and proper to retain his position as the National Chairman of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), and should resign now.”
According to the elder statesman, what happened at the convention gives strong warnings of, more likely, deleterious outcomes of the 2023 general elections, mainly the presidential, and their aftermaths.
“Most disturbing is what happened at the special national convention of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), in Abuja, on Saturday, 28th May 2022. I followed the live broadcasts of the proceedings, keenly, until about 12.30 am on Sunday, the 29th. I was quite impressed by the efforts of the Convention Committee, which was headed by former Senate President, Senator David Mark, and his assistants, particularly, the Governor of Bayelsa State, Senator Douye Diri. But, sadly, the outcome of the election leaves much to be desired; it was very unjust and rather unwholesome. It will definitely impact severe, adverse ramifications on the future unity of the Country.
“I was alarmed by the outrageous and Machiavelli manner in which Alhaji Aminu Tambuwal, Governor of Sokoto State, was so apparently “arranged” to announce his withdrawal from the contest, at the last minute; his speech changed the mood of the event. That was done in order to foist another Northerner as the party’s flag bearer; having regard to the fact that Governor Aminu Tambuwal was the only aspirant from the whole of the North West, which had about 192 delegates at the Convention.
“What Tambuwal did was not only dishonorable but also a serious electoral abnormality and a tragic betrayal of national patriotism for hidebound interests.
“Another Northern aspirant, Mr Mohammed Hayatu-Deen, a businessman from Borno State, had, earlier, also suddenly, withdrawn from the contest, citing its obscene monetization as his reason; but we now know better. It is now widespread understanding that there were pressures mounted on Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State, and former Senate President, Senator Bukola Saraki, to also withdraw, while Tambuwal deliberately delayed his action till the last minute. By doing so, unduly swept his North West votes to Atiku Abubakar.
“One can now appreciate the reasons given by Mr Peter Obi for his withdrawal from the PDP, both as a member, and as an aspirant, a few days before the party’s primary.
“And I would think that what he did was, without doubt, in respect, or obedience, to the position of the Southern and Middle Belt Leaders’ Forum.
“Unfortunately, some aspirants from the south believed that, with the resources and facilities at their disposal, their elders no longer matter, and disregarded, with impunity, the patriotic advice on the need to be steadfast on the position of the zoning of the Presidency to the south.
“They never minded that what we have been advocating was in their interest. They proved themselves to be selfish and arrogant, and thought they could win on their own steam. They failed; I can only hope that they have, now, learned their lessons.”
President Muhammadu Buhari has solicited the support of the the governors of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) as he picks the person who will succeed him in the next year’s elections.
A Yobe State High Court has awarded a teenage girl, Hamsatu Abdullahi, a total of N200 million as damages against Nigerian telecommunications giant, MTN and Nigeria Electricity Liability Management Company (NELMCO) over a wrong mast connection whose cable electrocuted her, leading to her hand and leg being amputated.
Fighting between people from Mauritania and Libya who are informal gold miners, in a remote part of northern Chad has left about 100 people dead and 40 injured.
Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, has accused some of his southern colleagues of betrayal, saying that with what they have done at the Party’s Presidential primary in Abuja, people in the South would continue to be slaves.
2 Journalists President Buhari Must Not Forget, By Ibrahim A. Yasallam
What has come to define the personality of President Muhammadu Buhari, apart from his acclaimed integrity and incorruptibility, has been his ability to listen to people, and above all, appreciate the good thing others have done for him.
As a matter of fact, it is believed that about 85 percent of his personal staff (special assistants and others) in the Presidential Villa or outside it, are those who had in one way or the other glued to him at the time he was struggling to rule this country through ballot, and democratically: those who had maintained faith in him at the time some fair weather ones had deserted him.
When he first came out in 2003 to campaign for the Presidency, there were many who are today in his government that really suffered all sort of personal discomforts, including Sarki Abba, Abba Kyari, Ya’u Darazo, and a host of others. Amongst such personalities are two journalists who stuck to him, though they were attached to his campaign team by their organizations, but they also suffered a lot of personal and material discomfort.
The journalists are Mammanga Ibrahim, who was attached to Buhari campaign team by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) and Yusuf Ozi-Usman, who was also attached to the campaign team by Media Trust Limited, publisher of Daily Trust and Sunday Trust.
During the 2003 campaign, there was nothing like day or night. In fact, the campaign team was on the road 24 hours. Members of the team used to sleep either in their vehicles as the vehicles sped through villages, towns and cities across the country or in lodges for just two or three hours at best.
The campaign team, for instance, arrived at Malam Madori in Jigawa State at about 3.00am while the team arrived at the palace of Alafin of Oyo at about 4am. Buhari’s campaign team stopped over to address supporters at a village between Jaji and Kaduna town at about 4.30am before the team proceeded to Jos, arriving in Jos at about 6.58am.
The vehicle conveying the journalists had a near fatal accident at Zaki Biam in Benue State, as the team headed to Wukari in Taraba State. It was around 6.30 in the evening. Buhari was kind enough to stop the convoy, came out of his Prado Jeep to give directive that the injured journalists should be taken to the nearest medical facility for attention. The journalists were promptly treated after which they immediately joined the campaign movement.
The vehicle conveying the journalists was also attacked by supporters of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Mubi, Adamawa State when they left the convoy to rush to a nearby cyber cafe to file stories to their head offices.
Yasallam wrote in from Kaduna.