Intrigue as PDP throws race for BOT chair open

The BOT Secretary Senator Walid Jubril had before the meeting held at the Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa Abuja confirmed to newsmen that the only agenda for the emergency meeting was election of a chairman in replacement of Obasanjo who suddenly resigned after his alleged fallout with President Goodluck Jonathan.   But after the […]

The BOT Secretary Senator Walid Jubril had before the meeting held at the Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa Abuja confirmed to newsmen that the only agenda for the emergency meeting was election of a chairman in replacement of Obasanjo who suddenly resigned after his alleged fallout with President Goodluck Jonathan.

 

But after the meeting, Jubril said the BOT could not elect a new chairman and has thrown the race open to all members contrary to earlier reports that only candidates from the south-east zone would be considered to achieve balance as the current national chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur is from the north.

Jubril said the race is now open to all members of the BOT and that “interested persons have one week to submit letters of intent.”

He said “the issue of the election will come up in January but before then we have to get intent from members of the committee. Up to the moment of the meeting, the board was yet to get any intent from any member.

“We are not in a hurry to bring up a new chairman. We want to come up with a chairman who is sound, credible, accepted and with proven integrity and has a clear vision for the party’s mission”.

Whoever emerges as BOT chairman will serve a single term of five years according to PDP constitution.

Sunday Trust gathered that the election of a new BOT chairman has become subject of intrigues within top members of the PDP who are against zoning the position to the south-east.

A source said some members argue that the position should be open to all because “Obasanjo from the south-west was chairman when the party chairmanship position was zoned to the south-east. So they feel the race should be open to all interested persons. The BOT will hold election between the candidates and whoever scores highest votes will become chairman”.

Main contenders so far for the office are former vice president Alex Ekwueme (Anambra); former national chairman of the party, Dr Ahmadu Ali (Kogi); former Works Minister, Chief Tony Anenih (Edo); former Senate President, Dr. Ken Nnamani (Enugu) and Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu (Imo).

Jubril said the board plans to hold the chairmanship election in January.

Present at the Thursday meeting were Bamanga Tukur, Senate President David Mark, Alex Ekwueme and PDP scribe Olagunsoye Oyinlola.

Others are Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim, former chairman of the party, Dr Bello Haliru, former governor of Nasarawa State, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, Chief Sam Sam Jaja, Chief Jim Nwobodo, former Speaker, Ghali Na’Abba, Senator Barnabas Gemade, Bode George, Mrs Mariam Amodu Ali, Prince Vincent Ogboulafor, Sunny Odogwu, Amb. Kema Chikwe and Senator Danjuma Goje.