PDP Train Will Leave You Behind, Tukur Tells Atiku, Aggrieved Governors

The factional national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party,
Bamanga Tukur, has warned former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and a
group of seven aggrieved governors of the party who formed a splinter
group that the party's train will leave them behind. He urged them to
retracetheir steps before it is too late.
Mr. Atiku and Governors Rotimi Amaechi (Rivers), Rabiu Kwankwaso
(Kano), Sule Lamido (Jigawa), Babangida Aliyu (Niger), Aliyu
Wamakko(Sokoto), and Abdulfatai Ahmed (Kwara) had walked out of the
party's recent special convention that held at the Eagle Square,
Abuja. The former vice president, the seven governors and other
disaffected party members then met at the Musa Yar'Adua Convention
Center where they released a list of grievances against the Bamanga
Tukur-led party. In addition, they announced their formation of the
new PDP, electing Baraje as the chairman of their faction. The Baraje
faction has since gone to court seeking a declaration that Mr. Tukur
should stop parading himself as the party's chairman.
But in one of his most direct responses to the growing splinter group,
Mr. Tukur described them as prodigal sons.
He made the comments while giving opening remarks at a seminar jointly
organized by the offices of the party's national women and youth
leaders. Women and youths drawn from the 36 states of the federation
attended the seminar.
Mr. Tukur said that the recent split in the party "is something of
concern but it is also something that can happen in a family. You
canquarrel but all should really be resolvedwithin the house not
outside. Anyone who has a son or daughter who [leaves], we call them
prodigal son or daughter. If they go [and come back] we can say
welcome back prodigal son."
Mr. Tukur added: "But, of course, if you are coming back you will also
have the consequences for taking a wrong step. You have to reconnect
and correct your wrong step. If you don't, the PDP train will move
without you."
In her remarks, the PDP's national women leader, Kema Chikwe, said the
party was facing challenging times because of the "morbid quest for
power by unreasonable members of the party." Ms. Chikwe served asa
minister in the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
At a past convention of the party, she had declared that there would
be no opposition to President Goodluck Jonathan's quest to secure a
second term in 2015.