•Baraje: He is a joker
•PDP chair's despotic style forced us to break away, says Nyako
Davidson Iriekpen in Lagos, Chuks Okocha inAbuja and Daji Sani in Yola
On two fronts yesterday, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) launched
offensives against aggrieved party members who pulled out on Saturday
to form the New PDP.
It approached the Federal High Court, Abuja, to commit the factional
national chairman of the party, Alhaji Kawu Baraje, to prison for
alleged contempt of court.
It also urged the court to jail the faction's national secretary,
Olagunsoye Oyinlola, and Baraje's deputy, Dr. Sam Jaja.
The party wants the court to jail themfor a minimum of one year each
for allegedly committing criminal contempt.
The legal battle came on the same day the party's national chairman,
Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, drew the battle line with members of the
splinter group of the party, whom he described as impostors.
In addition, he threatened that the partywould initiate the process to
have the seats of members of the National Assembly who have switched
allegianceto the New PDP vacant.
However, Tukur's characterisation of members of the splinter group,
who include former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar and seven governors
of the party, drew an instant rebuke from Baraje who said the party
chairman was a joker and was exhibiting his ignorance in party
politics.
The party in a motion on notice for the committal of Baraje and
others, filed yesterday, said it was doing so pursuant to Order 35 of
the Federal High Court Rules 2009.
PDP's lawyer, Mr. Ajibola Oluyede, who made the court processes
available to journalists at a briefing in Lagos, said he was directed
by the Tukur-led PDP to file the suit.
He said they had also filed a preliminaryobjection against the suit
filed by Oyinlola, Baraje and Jaja at the Lagos State High Court,
Ikeja.
The three had sued Tukur, Deputy National Chairman, Uche Secondus,
NationalWomen Leader, Dr Kema Chikwe, and National Publicity Olisa
Metuh, urging the court to stop them from functioning as the party's
national executive officers.
But the Tukur faction, in the contempt proceedings, said Baraje and
the others violated a judgment of the Federal High Court delivered on
January 11.
The judgment had nullified Oyinlola's candidacy as a nominee of the
South-west zonal chapter of the PDP.
The court declared Oyinlola's subsequent election to the office of
national secretary at the national convention held in March last year
as invalid, null and void by reason of another court order which
nullified the South-west zonal congress from which Oyinlola emerged.
The faction said Oyinlola conspired with Baraje and Jaja to take
actions that flouted the judgment.
By allegedly doing so, they obstructed the administration of justice
by subverting the appellate process, as Oyinlola's appeal against the
judgment isyet to be determined, it added.
The party said Oyinlola, "with guilty knowledge, appointed and
declared himself as the national secretary of the PDP for the purpose
of rendering the judgment of this honourable court nugatory and of no
effect."
The PDP averred that by claiming to be afactional national secretary
of the PDP,Oyinlola and the others disrespected the court.
"The alleged contemnors have since the delivery of the said judgment,
committed additional acts of criminal contempt by conspiring to flout
the purpose of the court as pronounced in its said judgment and the
authority of the court in so pronouncing," the party averred.
The applicants said the alleged contemnors acted to subvert the appeal
process made available by the 1999 Constitution by taking it upon
themselves to overrule the judgment and appoint Oyinlola to the office
which the court had validly removed him from, without following the
process stipulated by the judgment or awaiting the result of the
appeal.
Oluyede, who explained that what was happening in the party was a
minor incident that the party would soon overcome, blamed the actors
for their actions contrary to the provisions of the constitution.
He said: "That does not really pose a danger to democracy; democracy
means people should be free to express themselves. So, by expressing
themselves in this way, even though it is an illegal grouping, it does
not really portend danger to the polity or even the party.
"The only thing that needs urgent attention is that many times some of
the players have not recognised the need to play by the rules. They
ought to have realised that the freedom they are enjoying requires the
existence of certain democratic structures and institutions and that
they should in the course of expressing these rights bear in mind that
the institution must be preserved.
"That is the actual danger to the polity and that is going to affect
not just the PDP, it is going to affect the entire polity. And that is
the reason why my clients take a very serious approach to the action
of Alhaji Baraje, Prince Oyinlola, Dr. Sam Jaja and their supporters.
"It would appear that what they are trying to do is a coup d'état. Now
the constitution of the PDP stipulates the process of the change of
leadership. What the group led by Baraje has done is no more than an
attempted coup. Thereis an illegal attempt to take over the leadership
of the PDP without following due process."
Tukur, at a news conference in Abuja also yesterday, drew the battle
line with members of the New PDP.
He described members of the group, which include Atiku and the seven
PDP governors as impostors.
The seven governors are Rabiu Kwankwaso (Kano), Rotimi Amaechi
(Rivers), Babangida Aliyu (Niger), Aliyu Wamakko (Sokoto), Sule Lamido
(Jigawa), Abdulfatah Ahmed (Kwara) and Murtala Nyako (Adamawa).
The beleaguered party chair, who restated his leadership of the PDP,
urged security agencies and other institutions of democracy to regard
members of the New PDP, as impostors.
He also threatened that the party would initiate the process for the
recall of members of the National Assembly who have so far switched
loyalty to the splinter group.
By yesterday, 22 senators and 57 members of the House of
Representatives had openly declared their loyalty to the New PDP
chaired by Baraje.
As Tukur was attacking the New PDP members in Abuja, he was also under
fire in Yola where the governor of his state, Nyako, with whom he has
been engaged in a running battle since his assumption, criticised his
leadership of the party.
According to Nyako, Tukur's despotism andthe series of injustice meted
out to party members forced him and others toform a parallel party
structure last Saturday.
However, Tukur, at the press conference attended by members of the
party's National Working Committee (NWC),said there is only one PDP
and he is the authentic chairman.
He said: "The PDP has only one duly elected National Executive
Committee (NEC) under my chairmanship. I wish therefore to state with
all emphasis that any group of persons parading themselves as leaders
of NEC or any other organ of our party are impostors and I urge all
Nigerians, especially the security agencies and other institutions of
democracy, to regard them as such.
"We shall ensure that any person who is not duly elected into any
leadership position in our great party and has not been duly assigned
any role but goes ahead to arrogate such to himself will be made to
face the full wrath of the law.
"Similarly, all persons elected on the platform of our great party at
all levels who identify with these enemies of the oneness and
greatness of our party shall have their seats declaredvacant as
required by law.
"We shall leave no stone unturned to ensure that such persons and
indeed anyother individual who attempts to subvert the leadership of
the PDP shall reap in full, the consequences of such actions."
Tukur, after reading his prepared text, refused to take questions from
journalists as he and other members of the NWC left the venue of the
press conference.
In his reaction to the threats, Baraje described Tukur as a joker who
has little knowledge of party politics.
He said: "They are all jokers. They don't know what is party politics.
We are not surprised because they are ignorant of party politics. In
any case, the process of declaring seats vacant or recalling members
of the national or state assembly is well known in the constitution.
"To wake up and threaten that he is going to recall members supporting
us, shows that he is not fit to be the national chairman of PDP."
Meanwhile, the PDP National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Olisa Metuh, has
debunkednews reports that the certificate of registration of the party
is missing.
"PDP's certificate of registration is in proper and safe custody. It
is not true that the certificate of registration of PDP by INEC as a
political party is missing.
"The certificate is one of the documents handed over to the national
chairman by the immediate past National Working Committee to the new
NWC led by Alhaji Bamanga Tukur on assumption of office after the
March 24, 2012 national convention. It is absurd to say that it is
missing," Metuh said.
But speaking on the circumstances that led to the formation of the New
PDP, Nyako yesterday in Yola, the Adamawa State capital, blamed Tukur
for breaking up the PDP.
He told a crowd that gathered to welcome him back after the blemished
PDP special convention that the real political war has just started
following the injustice perpetrated by the national leadership of the
party.
He explained that the injustice and impunity being perpetrated by the
partyleadership needed to be halted or else the party would experience
more crises.
He said: "These are people who consider themselves demigods,
untouchable and having divine powers to do what they like by ruling
the people with impunity. Even Pharaoh has passed away, much less
mini-Pharaohs who are oppressing the people in the party."
He added that the unexpected protest by Atiku and other eminent
Nigerians against the conduct of the PDP leadership has vindicated the
position taken by the five Northern governors, who had been junketing
nationwide to consult eminent Nigerians in search of solutions to the
party's crisis.
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