*Visit Should have Started From Abuja

*Blames Damagun, Wike For Crisis In The Party

By Daniel Abia

The visit of Senator Adolphus Wabara, chairman of the Board of Trustees, BoT of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, and his members to Port Harcourt, Rivers state on Tuesday was not a panic mode but a peace mission to settle the festering crisis rocking the major opposition political party in the country.

Giving insight into the essence of the visit of the BoT to the Rivers state Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, the spokesman of the conference of united political parties, CUPP and a House of Representatives member from Imo state, Hon Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere said the visit was not based on panic mode but “trouble-shooting”.

Speaking in an exclusive telephone interview on Friday, Ugochinyere argued that though the visit was a bit late, “such visit supposed to start from Abuja. The BoT supposed to first visit (Ambassador Iliya Umar) Damagun and the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike.

“There was no need to visit Fubara. Fubara is the victim of the crisis. He is at the receiving end of the crisis. He has been undermined by the party even the acting national chairman and the national working committee. He shouldn’t have been the first person to be visited by the BoT”.

Hon Ugochinere who is also the leader of G-60 opposition coalition parties in the House of Representatives said that as the conscience of the PDP and in line with the constitution of the party, the Senator Wabara led BoT has the mandate to force the Acting national chairman of the party out of office for several reasons.

He said that for writing a letter to the court of Appeal in Port Harcourt was aimed at enhancing the impeachment of Governor Fubara, adding that section 42 of the PDP constitution is very clear on who should initiate legal matters in the party.

“The Port Harcourt visit by the BoT is welcomed but it came too late. The political crisis in Rivers state has been on for a long time now. BoT should do the needful by throwing Damagun out of the party to save the PDP from imminent collapse”, he said.

During the visit to Port Harcourt, Senator Wabara, had assured Governor Fubara that the visit was in search of peace and unity in Rivers State.

“We have been reading all kinds of things on the pages of newspapers and the Internet, for those who are Internet savvy. But, we, as elders of this great party decided to come to hear from the horse’s mouth.

“We were scared Sir, when we heard or read speculations, perceptions or what have you, that the party, if we are not careful, might lose Rivers State. Of course, if we lose Rivers State, Nigeria has lost its future.

“We don’t want what happened in 2015, and 2023 to repeat itself. These men and women you see here are very neutral. But as the conscience of the party, we must go by the rule of law. And anything you do, going by the rule of law, can never be wrong. It may be delayed, but it cannot be wrong,” he said.

On his part, Governor Fubara said “if I was having any doubt about my membership first, of this great party, I think today, I have gotten a reconfirmation that I am still, not minding the drama around, a member of this party.

“For once, I am happy to see the leaders, among whom are some founding fathers of the PDP, like Chief Bode George, Senator Ahmed Makarfi, Dr Okwesilieze Nwodo, joining the delegation here to talk about the unity of the party.”

“I want to assure members of our party, genuine members of PDP that are here with us, that this is another hope to show that our decision to stand by the party, still standing by the party, is not a wrong decision.”

Only last week, Fubara was rumoured to have concluded plans to dump the PDP and defect to the Actions People Party, APP, whose secretariat was bombed by dynamite explosion by yet to be identified persons.