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Stakeholders of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Kogi West Senatorial District have dissociated themselves from a recent meeting in Mopa, Headquarters of Mopamuro local government, which sought to micro-zone the senate ticket of Kogi West to a particular local government in Yagba Federal Constituency.
The Mopa meeting, held in the home of third republic deputy governor, Chief Sam Akande, and attended by politicians from various political affiliations mainly from Yagba East and Mopamuro Councils, reportedly micro-zoned the senate ticket to Yagba East Local Government.
It will be recalled that the PDP leadership in Kogi West, in a decision widely reported in the media, had zoned it’s senate ticket to Yagba Federal Constituency. The decision was ratified at the last stakeholders meting in Mopa, in September 2017. It was sequel to the forum’s meetings earlier held in Lokoja, Isanlu and Kabba. The decision, the party held, was in consonance with the existing rotation principle in the zone. The party nevertheless threw out suggestions to micro-zone to any local government.
The decision was adapted from recommendations of the “Strategic Committee on Elections into Party Offices and General Elections”, submitted to the party’s executive committee in Kabba, Kogi State, in May 2017.
The 23-man committee, Chaired by Alhaji Muhammed Abdulrahman , had been set up on March 24, 2017, by the Kogi West senatorial chairman of the PDP, Barrister Taiwo Kola-Ojo, to x-ray causes of the defeat suffered by the party in the 2015 elections and also to recommend “solutions that will promote reconciliation as well as provide the roadmap that will help the party in overcoming the present challenges”.
The 14-page document read in part: “Kogi West Senatorial District must ensure the rotation of the senate seat at the national assembly between her constituents (the federal constituencies of Kabba/Bunu/Ijumu, Lokoj/Koto and Yagba). National and state offices zoned to Kogi West must be rotated within the zone. The same principle must be applied in appointments both at state and national levels. The candidate for the election into the senate for 2019 should come from Yagba Federal Constituency, after which it goes back to Lokoja/Koto and Kabba/Bunu/Ijumu”.
But, penultimate Saturday, as part of their resolutions, a section of political leaders who met in Mopa, had moved that it is the turn of Yagba East Local Government to produce the next senator.
However, this position drew the ire of majority of PDP stakeholders in the senatorial district, who viewed the decision to micro-zone the senate position as being at variance with the existing decision by the Kogi West leadership not to micro-zone and is “null and void”.
The stakeholders also faulted the composition of the attendees, which included members of external political parties, saying the resolutions at the meeting cannot be binding on PDP members.
A top official in the Kogi West PDP Executive Committee, who spoke on the ground of anonymity, noted that “part of the agreement was that the two political offices that are common to Yagba Federal Constituency, which are senate and House of Representatives should not reside in one local government.
“We are also aware that it has since been resolved in May 2017 at a meeting of Yagba Political Forum held in Isanlu town hall that the next member of House of Representatives should emerge from one of Yagba East and Mopamuro local government areas. Yagba West local government area exempted because they produced the past two occupants of the seat. However, the senate seat was declared open for contest among the three local government areas with a caveat that no single local government shall produce both senate and Rep at the same time.”
He added that, “At the level of Kogi West PDP, that informed the idea of not micro-zoning the senate to any local government. The idea to micro-zone purportedly mooted in Mopa is that of a few, selected people who share the same view. And in this case, non-PDP members are involved. The composition of the meeting does not reflect the position of the majority of opinion moulders. It is not biding on PDP members. As far as we in the PDP are concerned, it is null and void”.
A group, under the aegis of concerned PDP stakeholders, in a letter addressed to the state chairman of the PDP, Sam Uhuotu and copied state and national leaders of the party, insisted on the existing decision by the Kogi West PDP leadership to throw open the contest for the senate ticket to the three local government areas in the constituency, namely Mopamuro, Yagba East and Yagba West Local Governments.
The letter issued in Lokoja yesterday reads in part, “our attention has been drawn to the news making the rounds that a group of individuals met in the house of Chief Samuel Ola Akande on Saturday, the 24th day of February 2018 at Mopa and purportedly zoned the Kogi West Senatorial seat to Yagba East.
We have also been informed that a delegation, most of whom are not our members is being put in place to canvass and convey their resolution to you and other stake holders of our party.
The above development is worrisome considering the effect it would have on the upcoming elections, moreso that our leaders of thought are working round to ensure the event of 2015 does not repeat itself. The time has come for the party to urgently call a general meeting of our party whereby the position of the party be made known.
“You may wish to know that the zonal leadership of our party has in its wisdom put in place Alh. Abdulraham led committee to amongst other things examine the reasons for the dismal outing of our party in the 2015 general elections. The committee submitted its report to the party in 2017. The committee brought to the fore impunity as a major reason why our party lost the elections. The committee among other issues suggested the zoning of the Kogi West Senatorial Slot to Yagba Federal Constituency but that the emergence of a candidate for the position must be through a transparent primary. The committee report which was accepted by the party does not recognize micro zoning. A copy of the accepted report is attached herewith.
“Also of note is the Eric Fiki led committee on reconciliation which visited all the local governments and canvassed for the mutual understanding of the members. The said committee also advised the party not to condone any form of micro zoning. The committees positions have been adopted at the general meetings of the party.
“The fall out of the ill-motivated meeting herein before mentioned has begun to divide our party in the wake of 2018 primaries. We hereby call on you to urgently set up a disciplinary committee in this matter to forestall the dire consequences attendant thereto. We cannot afford any form of division within the party. A stitch in time…”
The letter was copied to former governors Ibrahim Idris and Idris Wada, Senator Tunde Ogbeha, National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan and Kogi West Senatorial Chairman, Barr. Taiwo Kola-Ojo.
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