Nigeria Content Online

As
the leadership of the PDP moves to comply with the requirement by the
Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) that it
reconstitutes the party’s executive in several states, members of the
party in Adamawa state are left jostling over the fate of the state
executive.

The state chapter
of the party has been struck off the list of those to conduct fresh
congresses, even as it faces a boisterous faction.

The state chairman
of the party, Mijinyawa Kugama, has always maintained that allegations
about the illegitimacy of his chairmanship is all mudslinging by those
he said were filled with their own “parochial and selfish” interest.

Mr.Kugama, in his
submission over a petition brought before the Adamawa State High Court
submitted by a gubernatorial aspirant in the PDP, Umar Ardo, seeking
the dissolution of the state executive of the PDP, explained that the
state party executive was constituted through a properly conducted
congress supervised by INEC. The court ruled that the state exco was
properly constituted.

There are
contending forces angling to take control of the party platform, Mr.
Kugama said recently, “mostly because of its power capturing appeal and
you expect them to do hang on to anything that will offer them that
means.” Mr.

Kugama is accused
by aggrieved members of the party, of the state of providing the state
governor, Murtala Hamman Yero Nyako with the hold on the party
structure.

Bamanga Tukur,
former executive governor in the defunct Gongola state and one of the
supporters of President Jonathan’s presidency recently quipped that:
“it is unfortunate that the PDP in Adamawa state has been taken out of
the public place,” suggestive that Mr. Nyako has pocketed the party.

Mr Tukur is not the
only one disenchanted with the governor. Jubril Aminu, once Mr.Nyako’s
supporter, also has a strained relationship with the governor. The
fight between Aminu and Nyako is however not so much about who takes
control of the party than Aminu’s desire to be the one in charge.
Ordinarily,Nyako’s allegiances should be to Aminu for bringing him to
power.

Mr Nyako may have a
plethora of enemies, but the man has continued to wax stronger like the
proverbial cat with nine lives, surviving every war he has fought.

NEXT investigations
reveal that there are still hushed whispers about the possible
dissolutions of the party leadership, a possibility that is terrifying
the governor’s camp.

Mr.Nyako’s fears,
it seems, emerged by a shocking discovery that Mr Aminu had aligned
with Mr Tukur’s camp. The startling discovery occurred at a meeting
called by the PDP national chairman, Okwesilieze Nwodo to reconcile the
party factions in the state.

The reason, though
is not far-fetched, Mr Aminu is angling to have his political protégé
and a serving minister, Idi Hong replace Nyako as governor. Already
there seems to be a political compromise between Mr. Aminu and former
vice president, Atiku Abubakar.

The rapprochement
set in motion by the national secretariat of the party has come under
knocks, as the reconciliation train has since failed to leave its
station. Incidentally, the trio of Tukur, Silas Zwingina and Hassan
Adamu diametrically, all opposed to Nyako’s continuation in power are
part of President Jonathan’s election team.

A PDP leader says
,the generally accepted wisdom is that despite Mr Nyako’s suspect
commitment to Jonathan’s presidency, a majority of party members in the
state are favourably disposed to a Jonathan presidency and there is no
reason to destabilize the party structure.

Head of the
Jonathan campaign team, Sarki Tafida himself admitted that the people
of the state, have “promised their support for president Jonathan and I
verily believe that to be true.” Mr.Kugama is an avowed supporter of Mr
Jonathan and the party secretary, Phineas P. Elisha also told NEXT he
is a supporter.

“When the time
comes, I know whom to vote for ,” he said. “Let’s not be deceived, we
all know what’s good for the country. When that time comes, we would do
the right thing.” Mr Nyako’s men are also demanding a demonstrable
support of the presidency for the governor, as he launches his bid to
retain his job.

Of the four members
of the Jonathan campaign team from the state, Zwingina, Tukur,Adamu and
Ali Gulak, only the latter two does not arouse concern from the
governor’s men.

Mr.Tukur is widely
perceived to be plotting Nyako’s fall to feather his own nest,his
actions being seen to be tilted towards making inroads for his son,
Awwal Tukur, a former member of the House of Representatives, to become
the next governor of the state.

Mr Zwingina on his
part has already indicated interest in contesting the PDP guber ticket
with the governor seat. This explained the uproar by supporters of Mr
Nyako’s aspiration at the forum when Goodluck Campaign team berthed in
Yola.

Felix Tangwami, Chairman of the association of local government chairmen and a candidate for the senate, said

“At the time we sat and choose to endorse Jonathan/Sambo, nobody
coerced us.We were also encouraged when the president declared
sometimes ago that he had no enemies to fight. Therefore, the president
should not be swayed by rumour mongers who would incite the presidency
into taking actions that would cause the party to implode.” Tafida
himself acknowledged the need to support the aspirations of the party’s
leadership in the state. After all, the former vice president, Atiku
Abubakar,who is also from the state, would be waiting for a slip so
that he could add the state to his column during the primaries.