Adamawa PDP: A tale of the expected

The rousing welcome given to the National Chairman of the PDP, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur at the Yola International Airport on Wednesday last week attested to the fact that the party faithful who came from all the 21 local government areas supported the action of the national body. Aggrieved party chieftains and stakeholders in the state […]

The rousing welcome given to the National Chairman of the PDP, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur at the Yola International Airport on Wednesday last week attested to the fact that the party faithful who came from all the 21 local government areas supported the action of the national body.

Aggrieved party chieftains and stakeholders in the state who had been calling for the replacement of the Kugama – led executive heaved a sigh of relief on Wednesday, October 17 when the National Working Committee (NWC) acting on behalf of the National Executive Committee (NEC) announced the sacking of the Adamawa state executive of the party.

Announcing the dissolution, the National Publicity Secretary of the party, Mr. Olisa Metuh, said the NWC took the decision in exercise of Articles 31, section 2 (C) and 29,2 (b) which empower the organ of the party to, where necessary dissolve  a state  executive committee and also appoint a caretaker committee to run the affairs until when a new executive is elected within three months.     The national body also announced a caretaker committee headed by Ambassador Umar Damagun from Yobe State to take charge of the affairs of the party in Adamawa. The caretaker has since started work.

The publicity scribe also accused the Kugama executive of violating section 50 (1) of the party’s amended constitution which states that only NEC is allowed to summit  list of candidates for  election to both the state and national electoral commission. The national secretariat of the party had directed Its Adamawa state chapter to suspend the primary elections it was conducting for local government elections. The directive was not only ignored but the state chapter went ahead and submitted a list of candidates to the state electoral commission. The list contained mostly those regarded as Governor Murtala Nyako’s loyalists. It is being alleged among other things, that the Governor did that inorder pave way for his son Abdulazeez, a retired naval officer like his father, to succeed him 2016

But how did it all begin? In the Late 2006, Kugama was Deputy Chairman of the party but following the resignation of the Chairman, Chief Joel Madaki, to contest for the PDP gubernatorial ticket, a primaries that never took place as former President Olusegun Obasanjo and the then National Chairman Dr Ahmadu Ali insisted and imposed Admiral Nyako as the party’s flag bearer for the 2007 polls. Those who started the agitation for Kugama ‘s removal argued that since both Nyako and the party Chairman hail from the same  Mbilla ward and polling unit in  Mayo- Belwa, the position of chairman should  be re-zoned.

This writer recalls that at a stake holders meeting during the Late President Umar M. Yar’adua’s Presidential Campaign visit in Yola in 2007, the Late Comrade Paschal Bafyau raised the matter of the propriety of the replacement of Kugama, but Professor Jubril Aminu, the then Presidential linkman in the state, contended that the removal of Kugama at that point when elections were around the corner could affect the fortunes of the PDP. Aminu had his way, Kugama remained even after the election. He was returned chairman at a flawed congress, as observed by INEC.

Several attempts were made to remove Kugama but all were thwarted by the governor and Wadata national secretariat. Nyako sees in Kugama “a beloved son in whom he is well pleased” Nothing as such, should be done to him. It should be recalled that Nyako was the one who nominated Kugama to the position of Deputy Chairman after Nyako and four others recruited by Obasanjo to dislodge the loyalists of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar from the PDP successfully completed their task.

Kugama was always doing the governor’s bidding during party nomination as those not in the good book of the governor were denied even nomination forms. The party was factionalized leading to Chief Medan Teneke heading a parallel executive of the party. Most stakeholders of the party in the state bank rolled the Teneke faction. The fallout of the Kugama and Nyako’s continued stranglehold on the party led to the exit of many stakeholders, while others adopted the “siddon look” posture of the Late Chief Bola Ige. Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s loyalist left for Labour Party, while General Buba Marwa opted for Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) and ran against Nyako in the Febraury2012 election.

Those who could not leave, like Dr Umar Ardo continued to  challenge the legality of all the actions taken by the Kugama executive in the courts and press interviews. The feat performed by the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) in the last governorship election in the state was also the result of Nyako’s sidelining and marginalization of major stake holders coupled with maladministration and unsatisfactory performance.

It is however expected that the caretaker committee will put in place an executive that is broad based and take care of all shades of opinions and interests to bring back the unity that was the hallmark of the party in Adamawa.

Garba Yedimakudon, wrote from No 1b, Sukuta Street, Wuse II, Abuja