Guardian

• Says members’ suspension on ‘flimsy excuses’ dangerous

CHAIRMAN of House of Representatives Committee on Information, Zakari Mohammed, has said that only President Goodluck Jonathan could resolve the on-going crisis within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Speaking with journalists yesterday in Ilorin, Kwara State capital, Mohammed dismissed the reported planned hijack of the PDP structure in the state by the Presidency. He blamed the suspension of some PDP members on flimsy excuses on the alleged infiltration of the party structure by “certain funny elements.”

“My caution goes to Mr. President on the suspension of some members of the party because everything now is on his laps; there are certain elements who have infiltrated the party structure,” he said.

“I believe that President Jonathan should sit down as the leader of the party and do sober reflection so that this idea of throwing out members on flimsy excuses will be eliminated. The party has machinery for discipline. At the advent of the civilian rule in 1999, there was a mistake by the then President Olusegun Obasanjo.

“The funding of the party should have been the responsibility of all party men, channeled through the party’s secretariat. In 1999, funding of the party was put in the hands of the state governors, who started assuming the role of financiers of the state chapters of PDP.

“We have to retrace our steps and begin to run party politics as it is. It is just like weaning gradually not to get him malnourished. That is exactly the sickness in PDP.”

On the planned hijack of PDP in the state, he said the allegation was at the level of rumour, “because there is no categorical statement credited to anybody.” However, he said “if such insinuations are in the kitty, I want to make it abundantly clear that Kwara is different from every other state of the federation, because the state has a political structure that predates even some of us who are actors in the political scene.”

He added: “To target Kwara for whatever purpose, I don’t think it is the right thing, because this is a party that has delivered 22 out of the 24 members of the state House of Assembly; the six members of the House of Representatives, the three senators and all the state local councils, with the exception of one.

“The insinuations that a prominent member of the party is trying to be used as head of a splinter group are still at the level of rumour. I believe it is one of the activities of some fifth columnists who want to use that opportunity to infiltrate the party, and of course cause disaffection.”