From TAIWO AMODU, ABUJA
President Goodluck Jonathan, the seven aggrieved Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governors and certain elders of the party will tonight continue their peace talks aimed at resolving the whirling crisis in the party.
The peace talks could not be concluded last Wednesday because of the governors’ demand for further consultations.
But Sunday Sun checks revealed that today’s meeting promises to be stormy as the demands of the seven governors for the removal of the embattled national chairman of the party, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur will again be restated by them. Before the creation of a parallel national working committee of the party by the governors and certain disenchanted chieftains of the party who stormed out of the venue of the party’s last national convention, five of the governors tagged, the G-5 had embarked on trouble-shooting trips across the country, asking party elders and elder statesmen to intervene in the crisis.
A party source, however, noted that tonight’s meeting could result in a deadlock, because of what he claimed to be the “unreasonable demands” of the governors.
The governors are asking for Tukur’s removal, the recognition of Rotimi Amaechi as chairman of NGF, the reversal of his suspension by the party and a commitment from President Goodluck Jonathan that he would not be seeking the party’s ticket for the 2015 presidential election.
“Jonathan doesn’t want to be seen as weak. Even when he has acknowledged that members of virtually all organs of the party are asking for Tukur’s exit, conceding to Governor Lamido and his ilk could be perceived wrongly that he is losing the grounds,” the Sunday Sun source submitted. Indication has also emerged that the ‘recalcitrant’ governors will on Tuesday continue with their mission for an alternative political platform. Sunday Sun findings revealed that at the meeting of the Governor Rotimi Amaechi led Nigeria Governors’ Forum slated for Tuesday, the APC governors would also continue discussions with their aggrieved colleagues to consider the APC as a formidable platform for their individual political careers ahead of 2015.
Part of the agenda of the meeting officially disclosed to the media include, disagreement trailing the May 24 election, polio eradication and update on Federation Accounts Allocation Committee and Excess Crude Account.
Although the invitation for the meeting was extended to those who had since pitched tent with the Governor Jonah Jang faction, the PDP governors expected at the meeting besides the host Governor Rotimi Amaechi include, governors Sule Lamido, Aliyu Babangida, Dr Aliyu Wamakko, Abdulfatah Ahmed, Rabiu Kwankwaso, Murtala Nyako of Jigawa, Niger, Sokoto, Kwara, Kano and Adamawa states respectively. Governors from the APC controlled states expected at the meeting include, those of Oyo, Osun, Ogun, Lagos, Ekiti and Edo states. Others are Borno, Yobe, Zamfara,Nasarawa and Imo states.
But the National Publicity Secretary of APC, Alhaji Lai Mohammed has denied that the Tuesday meeting of the NGF was meant to seek a deal with the aggrieved PDP governors.
“That’s not true. You know that the NGF is independent of the party. I am not aware that their meeting fixed for Tuesday is for the purpose of opening discussion with APC national executive. I am not aware of that at all,” Mohammed told Sunday Sun on phone.
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