Politics

PDP loses Rep member to APC as House rejig committees

Published

2 weeks ago

October 2, 2024

By Francesca Hangeior

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) lost one of its members in the House of Representatives, Chris Nkwonta to the All Progressives Congress (APC) on Wednesday, October 2.

Speaker of the House, Abbas Tajudeen who announced the defection of the lawmaker, did not give any reason for the defection, but only said he was told to make the announcement by the House Leaders.

The announcement drew loud applause from members of the APC in the House who welcomed the defector to their fold.

However, Deputy Minority Leader, Aliyu Sani Madaki (NNPP, Kano) raised a point of order asking that the seat of Nkwonta be declared vacant in accordance with the provisions of section 58 of the 1999 constitution as amended.

He said while the section provides that a member can leave the party on whose platform he was elected if there is crisis in the party, the PDP was not in any crisis.

But Speaker Abbas ruled him out of order saying “information available to me indicate that there is a faction in the PDP”.

Nkwonta was however made the Chairman of the newly created House Committee on South East Development Commission, with Sunday Nnamchi grom Enugu state serving as his deputy.

The Speaker also announced the appointment of new Committee chairmen and their deputy in what look like a minor reshuffle in the committees.

Timehin Adelegbe (APC, Ondo) was appointed Chairman of the Committee on Science Research Institutions, Kabiru Ahmadi Mai palace will now head the House Committee on Sport, Abubakar Gummi heads the House Committee on North East Development Commission, Name Nkemkanma heads the Committee on Climate Change and security.

Other chairmen announced are Mohammed Mukthar as chairmen, Committee on Tourism, Zakariya Idris (Committee on Safety Standards), and Anayo Onwuegbu (Lake Chad)

Politics

PDP Govs Broker Truce, Instruct All Members to Revert to Status Quo

Published

22 hours ago

October 16, 2024

Kayode Sanni-Arewa

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Governors Forum has instructed all feuding members within the party to return to the status quo.

The directive was issued by the forum’s chairman, Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed, following a meeting of PDP governors that extended into the early hours of Tuesday.

Governor Mohammed clarified that while disagreements are inevitable in any political party, such issues can always be resolved amicably.

“There is no crisis,” he said, emphasizing that the party’s various groups, including the Governors, Board of Trustees (BoT), and National Assembly caucus, have reached a consensus for the National Working Committee (NWC) to restore the status quo.

Mohammed added that all suspensions within the party have been nullified, signaling an effort to maintain unity within the PDP.

Further details on the outcomes of the meeting are expected later.

Politics

PDP Crisis: Damagun’s Faction Demands Arrest of Factional Acting Chair, Others

Published

22 hours ago

October 16, 2024

Kayode Sanni-Arewa

The faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) led by Umar Damagum is calling for the arrest of Yayari Mohammed for impersonation and breaching a court order.

This demand follows a recent ruling from an Abuja Federal High Court that barred the PDP’s National Executive Committee (NEC) and Board of Trustees (BoT) from removing Damagum as the party’s Acting National Chairman.

Acting National Publicity Secretary Abdullahi Manga expressed this stance during a press conference in Abuja, emphasizing that Mohammed’s actions contravene the court’s directive.

“The security agencies should act against Mohammed and others for impersonation and violation of court order,” he stated, asserting that there are no alternatives left but to involve law enforcement to uphold the rule of law.

Manga clarified that the court order was issued prior to Damagum’s suspension, asserting, “The court order came before the supposed suspension. We were all here when the suspension came, and that was far after the court order.”

Politics

Edo 2024: We’ll reclaim our stolen mandate –PDP

Published

23 hours ago

October 16, 2024

Kayode Sanni-Arewa

The Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Edo State, Dr. Anthony Aziegbemi, has expressed confidence in reclaiming what he described as the party’s “stolen mandate” from the September 21 governorship election.

During a press briefing in Benin City, Aziegbemi revealed that the PDP has successfully filed a petition before the Edo State Election Tribunal to challenge the results, which he labeled as electoral robbery.

Aziegbemi also accused the All Progressives Congress (APC) of attempting to stall the court-ordered inspection of election materials at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) office, asserting that the PDP had outmaneuvered the APC’s alleged ploys. “We have begun the journey to reclaim the people’s mandate… The tribunal will give us our mandate based on overwhelming evidence,” he stated.

Further, Aziegbemi criticized the APC for disrupting processes at INEC, questioning why they would oppose transparency if they truly won. “If you won, why fight hard to stop the other person from inspecting the process?” he added.

As the PDP continues to gather evidence for the tribunal, Aziegbemi warned of further political arrests aimed at undermining their efforts but assured weekly updates to keep the public informed.