BOT Chairmanship: PDP splits over OBJ - No plan to remove him, says Deputy Publicity Secretary

By Idowu Samuel - 28.01.2008

THE plot to remove former President Olusegun Obasanjo as the Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) Board of Trustees (BOT) chairman by some members has started polarising the party.

There are indications that the ruling party is, however, opposed to the move. The party has denied ever nursing the plan to amend the constitution specifically to ease out Obasanjo as its BOT chairman, stating that the idea was only being bandied about by individual members.

Indications emerged last week that some members of the party had started pushing for the amendment of the PDP constitution to remove the clauses which paved the way for Obasanjo to emerge as the party’s BOT chairman.

The constitution of the PDP was amended late in 2006 to make the former president the leader of the PDP and the BOT chairman, although members had kicked vehemently against the amendment.

Members of the PDP who have been opposed to the role assigned to Obasanjo in the PDP had last week forwarded a memo to the PDP national headquarters, calling for the amendment of the PDP constitution to remove certain clauses from the constitution.

The memo to the PDP was signed by former Senate President, Senator Ken Nnamani, Chief Alani Bankole, Honourable Abdullahi Gumel, Honourable Bawa Bwari, Honourable Abdul Ningi, former Senator Joy Emordi and about 10 other members.

The listed members had called the party’s attention to some articles of the PDP constitution, calling for their removal since the sections were considered to have been adopted outside the 1998 constitution of the party.

The aggrieved members of the PDP argued that all amendments introduced by the party during the administration of Obasanjo “were not made to strengthen the internal democracy of the party but self serving.”

The PDP has said that it is aware of the moves to remove Obasanjo as the PDP BOT chairman, but denied giving it any attention. Speaking with the Nigerian Tribune on the development, the PDP’s Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Chief Bayo Alao said the party had no intention of allowing any constitution amendment targeted at removing Obasanjo as the chairman BOT.

Alao told the Nigerian Tribune that neither the National Executive Committee (NEC) nor the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party discussed the amendment of the party’s constitution.

He said the idea of amending the PDP constitution was limited to individual members of the party, contending that the highest decision making organ of the PDP would need to first adopt such an idea before bringing it to fruition.

The call for Obasanjo’s removal as the PDP BOT chairman was restarted recently following the allegation of sexual immorality made against the former president.