Funsho Balogun

Femi Fani-Kayode switches allegiance back to PDP from APC, exhibiting inconsistency in political conviction
In June 2014, Femi Fani-Kayode, a former aviation minister, switched allegiance back to the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, a party he ditched only last year to join the All Progressives Party, APC, on the basis of what he termed PDP’s gross deficiences in the crucial aspects of discipline, fairness and internal cohesion.

Without much ado, the PDP accepted the former minister back, giving him the privilege of functioning as a key member of a team to handle the strategies to unseat opposition candidates in elections held in the South-West. It did not matter if Fani Kayode had earlier condemned the PDP and President Goodluck Jonathan in very strong terms. About five months ago, Fani-Kayode extolled the virtues of Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, whom he said was a hero for exposing the alleged looting of $20 billion from the coffers of the NNPC.

At the period, Fani-Kayode described the Jonathan administration as being “woeful” and “rotten”. While kicking against Sanusi’s seeming victimisation by the suspension he got for revealing the alleged fraud, Fani-Kayode stated: “This government has once again shown that it has no shame and that it is utterly bereft of any semblance of decency or morality.” And just before he returned to the PDP, the former minister also spilled words emphasising his disdain for the Jonathan administration by asking the President to stop using his security agencies to torment and harass innocent people.

But after 2 June, Fani-Kayode’s tweeter posts showed that his abhorrence of President Jonathan’s PDP administration now belongs in the past. A day to the recent Osun State gubernatorial election that ended in favour of Rauf Aregbesola, Fani-Kayode stated on Tweeter that, “Today, the rulership of the cult of blood, the Almajiri, the Janjaweed Boko Haram and the Nigerian Taliban ends in Osun State.”

The new returnee was obviously rest assured of a PDP victory. And in another tweet, the former minister stated: “The APC is the political wing of Boko Haram and Boko Haram is the military wing of the APC.” Incidentally, on his facebook page the former Aviation minister had also underlined his zig-zag political posture through his abrupt defections. On the day he crossed over to the APC last year, he stated on facebook: “For me, this is a great and historic day, goodbye forever, PDP.” But again, almost the same words – “We have parted ways forever” – were printed on his facebook page when he decided to discard APC a few months back. Fani-Kayode claimed to have found his way back to the PDP based on his discovery that some elements in the APC saw the party as having a clear Islamic agenda, which does not sit well with him, being a “devout and committed Christian”.

But the basis for his defection has been viewed differently by pundits, who claim the former minister has another motive. His defection drama apart, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, re-arraigned the former minister, in a Federal High Court in Lagos, on money laundering charges in March 2014. The re-arraignment was sequel to an amended 40-count charge bordering on the offence, filed against him by the anti-corruption agency on 24 January 2014.

Fani-Kayode was first arraigned in December, 2008 before Justice Ramat Mohammed on a 47-count charge, but was granted bail in the sum of N200 million with two sureties in like sum at the period. He was re-arraigned in February, 2013 and five judges have heard the case against him thus far in the last five years.

Although Fani-Kayode has never been convicted of the charges, his move back into PDP is seen in some quarters as a step towards ensuring that his alleged sins are forgiven.