2011: Uncertainty over Atiku’s Presidential Candidacy

Dark clouds now hover over former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s presidential ambition following a statement yesterday by the Peoples Democratic Party that he was not among returnees/new members granted waiver to contest for any of its tickets.

Surprisingly, Governor Theodore Orji of Abia State who is yet to confirm his speculated return to the PDP was on the list of new members granted waivers to contest for its gubernatorial ticket in Abia State.

Atiku in a statement yesterday said he was entitled to the waiver given to returnees to contest based on the recommendation of the party’s National Reconciliation Committee led by former Vice President, Alex Ekwueme

It would be recalled that Atiku returned to the PDP last year after almost three years of romance with the Action Congress on whose platform he contested the 2007 presidential election.

By the PDP constitution, returnees to the party will lose their seniority and privileges conferred by previous seniority and will have to wait for at least two years before they can contest for any elective post.

Again, Article 8.9 of the same constitution says, “persons who desire to rejoin the party after leaving it shall, unless exempted by the National Working Committee be placed on probation for a period of not less than a year.”

But returnees can be granted waivers on these conditions by the national secretariat of the party, based on recommendations of state chapters.
However, Atiku’s name is yet to be forwarded to the national secretariat of the party from his state because of the factional crisis rocking Adamawa PDP. The Meden Teneke-led faction which Atiku belongs to is not recognised by the national secretariat of the PDP.

The National Publicity Secretary of PDP, Prof. Ahmed Alkali who briefed newsmen on the outcome of its 52nd NEC meeting yesterday regarding wavers said the party deals with issues before it and that Atiku’s case on the issue of waiver had not come up before it.

As a result, Atiku’s name was conspicuously missing on the list of those granted waivers to contest the primary election at the various levels of the party released yesterday by the PDP and Alkali said if the former vice president’s case was presented, “it will be treated.”

The PDP is also in doubt as to whether Atiku has completed the process of returning to the party in conformity with its laid down guidelines.
Alkali said when the former vice president came into the PDP secretariat last year and formally told the leadership of the party that he was returning to the party with all his supporters, “he was asked to go back to his ward and register because that is the elementary thing and then the process can start from there.”

The PDP national publicity secretary continued: “He (Atiku) indeed brought a document showing the names of the people who came along with him and signed the document and said they were returning unconditionally. When he left, we invited you (press) to come and see the former national chairman, Vincent Ogbulafor so that he could tell you why Atiku came into his office.

“As Ogbulafor said, the party cannot reject any person coming back to the party. No party worth its salt can do that. But what the former national chairman said, and that is the position of the party is that we do not have card here to give to members. So, he was asked to go back.”
Alkali said Ogbulafor’s statement meant that Atiku should go back and continue with the process of healing and reconciliation, “a kind of fence mending involving him and all the stakeholders in Adamawa State.”

He said since that time, there had been formal consultations and discussions involving Atiku and PDP stakeholders in Adamawa State and that the stakeholders have forwarded reports to the PDP secretariat.
Alkali said: “This is the usual thing in politics; there’s nothing unusual about it. And so, by the time they sort this out, Atiku will also be treated like any other person who has come back to the party; he will be given the waiver to be qualified as a bonafide member of the party.

“So, I think the issues are very clear. No matter what we have done here, all these cases that you see of people being cleared were first done at the relevant level before they got to the national secretariat; this is the situation on the ground and I cannot see why there should be any controversy.”
PDP in Adamawa State is torn into two factions. The one loyal to the former vice president is led by Meden Teneke and the Governor Muritala Nyako faction is led by Mijinyawa Kugama.

The former vice president claimed that he had registered in his Jada ward with the faction led by Teneke. But in a swift reaction, the Mijinyawa Kugama’s faction claimed that they were not aware that Atiku had returned to the PDP.

Kugama said that as far as the party was concerned, the former vice president was still a member of the Action Congress.
Also, the National Secretary of PDP, Abubakar Baraje, speaking on the Adamawa PDP crisis said that his record as the national secretary shows that Kagama Mijinyanwa was still the chairman of PDP in the state.

Atiku in the statement sent by his media aide said: “Atiku Abubakar, Turaki Adamawa is entitled to a waiver like all other returnees to the Peoples Democratic Party. The Turaki, who has since returned to the PDP having been duly registered in his Jada 11 ward of Jada Local Government Area Adamawa State, like many others sought expression in AC as a result of being excluded from a party he helped found.”
“But the leadership of the ruling party seeing the necessity to woo back these valuable members constituted the National Reconciliation Committee led by former Vice President, Dr. Alex Ekwueme.”

The former vice president said the Ekwueme committee recommended in its report that "the membership revalidation exercise should be revisited to allow for unfettered and unconditional return of all members of the party and access to new members.
He said this recommendation was adopted and included in the white paper from the National Working Committee to the National Executive Committee of the party in "Recommendation 9" (pp.5).”

Atiku continued: “For the avoidance of doubt, please refer to the minutes of the 42nd NEC meeting of the party held November 23, 2007 at the Wadata Plaza wherein the White Paper sent in by the NWC for consideration was adopted and is listed as Approval 1 (pp.7). We do not believe that the party is adopting a different sort of rules in the waiver for Atiku and his associates.

“We believe that the PDP will make a proper announcement on the issue when it deems fit, as we have been repeatedly assured.”The list of returnees/new members of the PDP granted waivers to contest include Senator Suleiman Nazif Gamawa (Bauchi State); Umar Kumaila and Alhaji Mohammed Goni (Borno State); Governor T. A Orji along with the members of the Abia State House of Assembly; Senator Uche Chukwumerije; Iheanacho Obioma; Umeh Kalu, Uzo Azubuike and Aro Aronsi.
The following members from Yobe State were also granted  waivers: Senator Usman Albishir, Senator Lawan Jalo Zarami, Zakariya Galadima, Tijani Zanna, Zakariya John, Jonga Hassan Jonga, Hassan Abba Abdullahi, Kakumi Musa, Sherif Abdullah, Mustapha Bolibe, Hajiya Adama Adamu, Ngurnoma Maidala and Sani A. Idi.