As the battle to replace the embattled chairman of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, shifts to the arena of party leaders, indications have emerged that the wife of the president, Dame Patience Jonathan, has a preferred candidate for the job: the current minister of transport, Idris Umar from Borno State.
Tukur was said to have submitted his resignation letter to President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday, but he denied it while speaking to State House correspondents.
Tukur has been under intense pressure to step down as PDP chairman following a series of allegations against him including taking unilateral decisions and inappropriate actions as chairman of the party.
The climax of the pressure came as the majority members of the PDP National Working Committee (NWC) passed a vote of no confidence on him last week at a meeting with Jonathan in attendance.
The Board of Trustees (BoT), National Caucus, Body of State Chairmen of PDP as well as the PDP governors have all passed the same verdict as the NWC’s on Tukur.
LEADERSHIP gathered that as Tukur’s resignation came after a futile attempt by the president’s wife to sustain him in office, she extended her tentacles to party leaders, soliciting their support for Umar as PDP national chairman.
According to a source in the Tukur-must-go campaign, their desire to oust the national chairman had commenced immediately after the defection of the G-5 governors to the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) in November last year.
The first lady’s choice of Umar has been criticised by some leaders of the PDP who are of the view that she was part of the trouble in the PDP.
The source said: “We have been on this struggle for long, even before the G-5 governors made good their threat to dump the PDP; but each time we tried to effect it, we were always hitting the rocks because the president’s wife was convinced that it was only Tukur who could deliver her husband in 2015
“And, unfortunately, there are some close aides of the president who, in connivance with the chairman, were always drumming it to her ears that those who want Tukur out were indeed after the president; all these are tissues of lies that actually prolonged the ultimate decision.
“But, again, even with his resignation, there is yet another challenge that is now threatening the unity of the PDP, and it is the influence of the president’s wife who again insists on Senator Idris Umar, the transport minister, to be made chairman.
“She has reached out to almost all those who matter in the party to support Umar but we will not bow to this because it is high time Her Excellency was counselled to be circumspect in the affairs of the PDP.”
Amidst all these, Tukur’s media aide, Oliver Okpala, said his principal had not resigned.
“Be informed that the national chairman has not resigned; it is all speculation. The national chairman will be at the BOT meeting tonight and will also attend the NEC of the party tomorrow,” he said.
At the PDP headquarters yesterday, NWC members rose from their meeting about 5pm and headed for the Presidential Villa for the rescheduled national caucus meeting of the party.
The party’s Board of Trustees (BoT) would hold at the same venue.
Tukur, who did not make an appearance at the party headquarters, it was gathered, avoided being suspended by the NWC of the party.
A source however told our correspondent that the NWC members left for the Villa for the larger meeting where the agenda of the NEC meeting would be adjusted in the face of current events.
The source said, “Before now, the agenda of the NEC meeting had stipulated for a motion to test the popularity of the national chairman via a vote, but now that we have heard of his resignation we will have to confirm with the presidency so that the agenda would be amended accordingly.”
Other issues lined up for deliberation at the meeting include the resignation of former President Olusegun Obasanjo as well as the style of leadership of Dr Bamanga Tukur.
Also, the meeting will assess the implications of the defection of five state governors from the party to the main opposition APC.
However, as required under the PDP constitution, Tukur addressed his resignation to the national leader of the party, President Jonathan.
Today’s NEC is expected to consider the options and map out a way forward for the party with Prince Uche Secondus, the deputy national chairman, taking over the leadership of the party in acting capacity, if the option to immediately pick Tukur’s replacement from his zone fails.
However, the final decision on who takes over from Tukur would rest on the National Executive Committee (NEC) which meets today.
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