PDP Crisis: Governors Forum Fails To Support Removal Of Uche Secondus

By Ayodele Oni

As voices rise against Prince Uche Secondus, National Chairman of the People’s Democratic Party, (PDP) the emergency meeting of the PDP Governors Forum rose in Abuja on Monday without any resolution on the fate of Secondus.

Chairman of the Governors Forum, Governor Aminu Tambuwal told anxious Journalists at the end of the meeting that it continues on Tuesday.

He explained that the Governors resolved that there must be peace in the party and they were working towards it.

According to him, the Governors resolved to continue dialoguing with all stakeholders and that the crisis would be resolved.

As the PDP Governors were meeting, some youths, claiming to be members of the party stormed the national secretariat in Abuja and aligned their voices with the calls for the removal of  Prince  Secondus.

Earlier on Monday, the Southwest Vice Chairman, Ambassador Arapaja, alongside other Vice Chairmen asked Secondus to resign.

In a swift reaction, through a statement by his media adviser, Mr Ike Abonyi, the embattled chairman insisted that he would not resign, saying those calling for his resignation were in the minority.

Some PDP youths under the auspices of Save PDP Group stormed the Wadata Plaza, demanding the immediate sack of Secondus as they cited the recent defections of some governors from the party’s fold to the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC as well as Secondus’ leadership style, among others.

Bearing various placards with inscriptions, “Uche Secondus Must Go”, “We have lost confidence in your chairmanship”, “We cannot afford to lose more governors” among others, the youths called on the national chairman to heed the call and quit his office to pave way for the repositioning of the party ahead of the 2023 general elections.

While addressing news men, leader of the protest, Comrade Tamunotonye Inioribo accused Secondus of polarizing the party for his own selfish interest, saying he is to blame “for the defection of three governors and dozens of Senators from the party.”

According to him, organs of the party including, the PDP Governors’ Forum, National Working Committee, National Executive Committee “are all divided.”

Tamunotonye also accused the chairman of creating factions in states for his own selfish ambition even as he noted that most departments of the party have been crippled, owing to what he called a deliberate attempt to weaken the party for selfish reasons.

Also on Monday, the PDP House of Reps Caucus in a letter, asked Governors’ Forum to persuade Uche Secondus to resign.

The Caucus wrote to the party’s Board of Trustees, as well as the Governor’s Forum, requesting for firm decisions to be taken to salvage the party, which has been enmeshed in a series of crises lately.

Among its prayers in the letter, the Caucus asked that the party National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus be persuaded to resign honourably, in order to get the party refocused, to save Nigeria from bad governance.

The letter, which was signed by the Leader, PDP House of Reps Caucus, Rep. O. K. Chinda enumerated the huge losses recorded by the party as a result of the inactions of the national leadership of the party, and stated that the situation calls for urgent and effective steps to be taken towards effecting a real paradigm shift and quick installation of a vibrant leadership in the party.