Yar’Adua aborts another planned postponementPDP Convention

Idowu Samuel, Abuja - 27.01.2008

There are indications that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) would announce new dates for its National Convention and congresses following the reported instruction by President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua to the party never to contemplate another postponement.

Yar’Adua, Sunday Tribune can report, had gone ahead to suggest that the party should set up a Caretaker Committee to take over the control of the PDP from the present National officers.

He was said to have also instructed the party to set up a National Convention Committee to see to the prompt conduct of the postponed national convention and congresses.

The top echelon of the party had met in Abuja twice during the week with the intention to announce another postponement of the National Convention and congresses, owing to conflicting interests on what specific date to pick by the party.

There have been clamour by some members of the party for the postponement of the PDP convention till 2009 on the excuse that the present national officers of the party were elected to serve a four-year mandate.

Supporters of the PDP chairman, Chief Ahmadu Ali, were suspected to be the brains behind the push for the postponement of the National Convention amid threats by them to obtain a court injunction in order to compel the postponement.

The PDP National headquarters, through its National Secretary and National Publicity Secretary, Chief Bernard Ezeh and Lady Imeh Udoh, respectively had repeatedly denied that its chairman was disposed to having the national convention postponed; stressing that Ali could never have nursed the interest, having been given ambassadorial office by President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua.

There have been sharp disagreements between the top shots of the party noted to be representing different interests on the National Convention issues, a reason the Party was said to have been at a loss on the appropriate date to fix for the convention.

President Yar’Adua, Sunday Tribune learnt, had instructed members of the party who sought his audience about the new dates for the convention and congresses a few days ago not to attempt any further postponement in order not to cast the ruling party in a bad light.

The presidential instruction on the issue of the convention was said to have been the major reason the party resolved to shift forward its proposed National Executive Committee meeting till Monday, 28 January instead of the initial January 31 date earlier announced by the party for deliberation on the dates of the national convention and congresses.

The PDP Chairmanship aspirants have long been routing for immediate announcement of the new dates for the national convention and the congresses, whereas some influential members of the party were said to be insisting that a postponement would be more healthy if only for the party to gain sufficient time to resolve the intense internal wranglings within the ruling party.

The PDP chairmanship aspirants, all from the south-east, owing to the zoning formula adopted by the party, have been expressing outrage over the repeated postponement of the national convention with loud complaints that the current chairman has freely been savouring the opportunity by the South- east to produce the leadership of the ruling party, arguably their only gain in the PDP zoning formula.

The initial dates of the National Convention of the party fixed for last year December was postponed on the grounds that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)complained that it never intimated it about the dates contrary to the provision of the Electoral Laws of Nigeria.

Indications that the instruction by Yar’Adua was already making impact on the national executive officers of the party emerged at the close of last week when some of the officers were seen parking their personal effects from their respective offices ahead of the announcement of the new convention date.