Barely two months out of power, Nigeria’s former ruling Peoples Democratic Party seems hemmed in on all sides as it struggles in its new role of opposition. But the biggest jitter among party chieftains is what happens in the next few months.

AYORINDE OLUOKUN/ABUJA

For 16 years, the Peoples Democratic Party presided over Nigeria and its resources like Lord of the Manor. During those years, funding or access to cheap funds was not one of the concerns of the leaders and the bigwigs of the party.

The party’s control of government at the federal level and over 20 States of the federation and cash rich agencies and parastatals ensured that it was awash with liquid cash, some of which it used to sponsor scores of satellite political parties to ensure that the political space remained muddled for its benefit. Overfed and hubristic party officials never got tired of declaring to Nigerians without any evidence to back up their claims that PDP was the biggest party in Africa.
This claim, usually delivered with the utmost haughtiness by its purveyors was only surpassed by the declarations by different PDP bigwigs that the party will be in charge of Nigerian affairs for at least 60 unbroken years.

On 29, March 2015, the opposition All Progressives Congress, APC brought PDP’s hauteur to an inglorious end, 44 years ahead of its projected lifespan with the victory of General Muhammadu Buhari over Goodluck Jonathan in the presidential polls. PDP also lost control of both chambers of the National Assembly to the opposition party.

The thrashing of PDP’s 60 years-in-power dream was completed two weeks later when the PDP was routed in many states it controlled. From over 20 states it controlled before the polls, it could only retain 13 states, four of which were not subject to the election. In contrast, APC massive victory in the polls brought the number of states under its control to 20 states in addition to the two it controlled where election did not hold. For PDP, the 2015 general elections indeed signified an all -round reversal of fortunes.

Power Has Changed Hands

Perhaps, there is no better place to gauge the effect of the transition from the ruling party in charge of the biggest economy in Africa to the opposition than a visit to the Wadata Plaza, Wuse Zone 5, Abuja National Secretariat of the party. Gone from the roads adjoining the expansive buildings were battalions of policemen, men of State Security Service and private security charged with the duties of keeping unwanted guests out of the area.

The retinue of SUVs and other exotic cars outrageously perfumed, pot bellied politicians attired in different forms of gaudy robes and “executive beggars” in different guises that were constant feature of the environs of the building have thinned out over time.

The constant din and clatter of vehicles and opening of the massive gates for entrance of politicians has given way to a kind unusual silence, the eeriness of which is perhaps, a foreboding of uncertain future of the once boisterous party with even more boastful officials.

The open dissension between members of the National Working Committee, the administrative organ of PDP and workers at the party’s national secretariat over wages aptly captured the unease and disarray in the party.

With its access to sources of cheap funds now curtailed, the NWC had announced measures to cut costs, chief among which was the reduction of the workforce at its National Secretariat by half as well reduction of salaries and allowances by the same margin.

The cost cutting measures, which will also affect members of NWC, were announced in a letter signed by Wale Oladipo, the national secretary of PDP. The memo, titled ‘Re-organisation and restructuring of staff at the national secretariat of the Peoples Democratic Party’ and dated July 29, 2015, said the decision was taken at the 406th meeting of the NWC.

The memo read: “The NWC, at its 406th meeting held on 29th July, 2015, considered the Report on the reorganization and restructuring of staff at the National Secretariat and approved the following:

• Reduction of the allowances of all NWC members by 50%;
• Reduction of the number of personal staff of the NWC members by 50%; *
• Reduction in the number of security personnel attached to the National Officers by 50%;
• The reduction of the salaries and allowances of all staff (Establishment and Staff of NWC members) by 50% effective August, 2015;
* Abolition of the Research Directorate and transfer of its functions to the Peoples Democratic Institute.

The letter also directed that staff who would remain after the purge would have to obtain individual letters of revalidation from their State Party Chapter within one month to indicate their suitability for service at the National Secretariat.”

Oladipo said the decision, among others, would take effect from August.

The N12 billion Question and call for EFCC Investigation

But the ink used to print the letter had hardly dried before the workers rose up in arms against PDP executives. According to the workers, the retrenchment would not have been necessary if members of the NWC had not squandered on frivolities the N12 billion realized from sale of nomination and delegate forms in the run up to the 2015 elections.

After a meeting held to discuss the plans for massive retrenchment, the workers resolved to write a letter to leaders of the party like former President Goodluck Jonathan, the acting Chairman, Board of Trustees of the party, Alhaji Haliru Bello, the Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu; PDP caucuses in both the Senate and the House of Representatives, Chairman, PDP Governors’ Forum, Dr. Segun Mimiko, and all the PDP governors.

The workers in the letter titled ‘Re: Organisation and Restructuring of staff at the national secretariat of the Peoples Democratic Party,’ dated 30 July, wondered why the party will be in such a dire financial situation less than three months after it lost power and with the N12 billion realized from the sale of delegates and nomination forms just some months ago.

“With this healthy bank balance, we find it strange that after just two months of handing over power, the NWC is proposing a 50 per cent reduction in staff emoluments.”

The workers said they were aware that members of the NWC pay themselves humongous amount of money after the elections.

“We reject in totality the proposal to reduce staff emolument by 50 per cent. This is because unlike the members of the NWC, the staff are solely dependent on their salaries and allowances,” the workers said and urged the party to follow the normal administrative method if it wants to sack them.

The workers, led by their Chairman and Secretary of PDP Staff Welfare, Ngozi Nzeh and Dan Ochu-Baiye respectively took their battle against members of the NWC higher when they called on EFCC and other anti corruption agencies to probe the party executive at a press conference held in Abuja last Friday.

Ochu-Baiye, who read the statement signed by 74 staff members of the party, accused the NWC members of financial mismanagement and lack of competence to run the affairs of the party.
According to him, it was curious to observe that the party could be so financially hamstrung by executive recklessness of its NWC members so much that 12 billion naira was squandered in nine months.

“Party members will need to know why delegates were compelled to pay N10, 000 each into a private account of a company called MORUFI NIG. LTD? We are aware that over one billion naira was realized from this fraudulent exercise. Why did the NWC compel party members to pay sums into a company account rather than the usual party account in the same Zenith Bank?”

The workers lamented that legitimate bills owed to media houses, contractors and even cleaners have not been paid till date by the party.

NWC Must Go!

The workers who also revealed that several factors, including criminal imposition of unpopular candidates caused by the NWC, were responsible for the party’s poor performance in the last general elections also revealed instances of extortion by the party executive. They cited Ndudi Elumelu who paid N750million naira to the NWC to obtain the gubernatorial ticket of the party in Delta State.

“There are many other victims,” the workers said.

They also revealed that Governor Idris Wada of Kogi state that is seeking re-election on 21 November was requested to pay one billion naira to the same NWC to retain his ticket.

Ochu-Baiye added that millions of PDP members were in great pains with the current reality of how the party was “now being run aground by a patently incompetent and self-centered set of NWC members.”

According to him, the NWC had refused to summon a meeting of the National Executive Committee (NEC) since the party lost in the last elections “due to these ceaseless acts of recklessness.”

He therefore asked the party’s Board of Trustees, the National Caucus and other members of the NEC to invoke relevant sections of the party’s Constitution to call for a meeting of NEC since the NWC is reluctant to do so.

“We wish to reiterate that the greater number of members of staff has spent over 16 years working and building the PDP. We remain loyal staff, party members and stakeholders committed to retrieving the founding vision of our great party,” Ochu- Baiye added.

Olisa Metuh, the party’s publicity secretary and Oladipo however described the allegations of the workers as baseless.

PDP NWC, BOT Speak in Discordant tunes

But just like the workers said in their petition to EFCC controversies over the spending of the N12 billion was one of the immediate crises that hit PDP after it lost the presidential election.

Ayo Fayose, the Governor of Ekiti State and the party’s enfant terrible had led the call from PDP governors and other big wigs of the party asking members of the NWC led by Adamu Muazu to resign from their position over the disastrous results recorded at the polls as well as controversies over the N12 billion realized from sale of forms.

But members of the NWC had defended themselves by claiming that they used the bulk of the funds to offset years of unpaid allowances being owed them by the party.

Muazu bowed to pressure when he eventually threw in the towel as chairman of PDP on 20, May, 2015, thus paving the way for Uche Secondus, the Deputy National Chairman to take over the leadership of the party in acting capacity in line with the provisions of section 45 (1) and (2) of the party’s constitution.

In the same vein, the octogenarian Chief Tony Anenih, the Chairman, Board of PDP Trustees also resigned from his position. Similar calls for the resignation of the other NWC members did not sail through. Hopes that the PDP will begin the rebuilding of its structures with the election of a substantive chairman in August 2015 now seem misplaced.

The party had earlier announced that it would zone the position of the national chairman to the North East where Muazu hails from. This magazine gathered that the zoning was also done to prevent the obliteration of the party from the Northern part of the country where it currently only controls three States- Taraba, Kogi and Gombe.

The election of a new chairman, according to the party’s constitution, will be made at the party’s national convention. Senator Walid Jibrin, the PDP BOT Secretary had told journalists on 24 June that the party’s national convention would be held in August, where a new chairman would emerge. Jibrin spoke after a meeting of the BOT.

Based on the information, party bigwigs interested in contesting for the position, especially from the North East, it was gathered made enquiries from the national secretariat about procedures to be adopted.

Some of those speculated to be interested in leading the PDP include former minister of transport, Abdullahi Idris Umar, former minister of state for power, Mohammed Wakil, national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Movement (PDM) Senator Abubakar Mahdi and former adviser to President Goodluck Jonathan on political affairs Rufai Ahmed Alkali. Also, former minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Alhaji Bala Mohammed, former chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu as well as former adviser to the president on political affairs Ahmed Gulak and former PDP vice chairman Senator Paul Wampana were also listed as interested in the position.

But most of them have not come out to categorically express their desire to lead the battle for the turnaround of the fallen behemoth.

Well, they need not bother as the PDP NWC had said no national convention of the party would be held till early 2016. Olisa Metuh, the National Publicity Officer of PDP some weeks ago told a national newspaper that those who want the national convention to hold in August 2015 should hold it in Benin or Ghana.

He added that the national convention will not hold until the expiration of the tenure of the present national officers in March 2016 and that the PDP post-election review committee led by Deputy Senate President Senator Ike Ekweremadu must submit its report before it would hold. .

“I think the convention will hold in Benin Republic or Ghana for those who want it in August. The PDP convention that I know is holding in March, 2016, in Nigeria after the Ekweremadu-led committee would have submitted the report of its findings,” Metuh said.

For now, PDP fears are hinged on whether it can still hold some of the states under its control. Elections are scheduled in two of them: Kogi and Bayelsa on Saturday, November 21 and Saturday, December 5 respectively. The loss of the two States will no doubt further diminish the status of PDP as a national party.

Even more important, political analysts also said PDP may be doomed eternally if it lost the key oil producing states that have the funds it can deploy for its revival to battle APC. APC candidates in Rivers and Akwa Ibom states are battling in election tribunals to overturn the victory of the PDP governors there.

With the outcome of the 2015 general elections, APC is now in control of 23 States namely: Adamawa, Bauchi, Benue, Borno, Edo, Imo, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kwara, Lagos, Nasarawa, Niger, Ogun, Osun, Oyo, Plateau, Sokoto, Yobe and Zamfara while the PDP is controlling 13 States: Abia, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross River, Delta, Ebonyi, Ekiti, Enugu, Gombe, Kogi, Ondo, Rivers and Taraba.

Proceeds from the sale of crude oil remain the major source of revenue for funding of the activities of the 36 States of Nigeria as well as the federal and local governments through the Federation Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC) meetings.

The PDP controlled the oil producing States of Akwa Ibom, Delta, Rivers and Bayelsa earn far more than the APC states. Analysis of allocations from federal purse to the 36 States in April 2015 by Abuja based Daily Trust, for instance revealed that the total monthly net earnings of the four States was N40, 260,470,371.53 which is the equivalent of the combined monthly net earnings of about 15 APC states.

The newspaper also noted that the two biggest earning APC states- Lagos and Kano whose monthly allocation from the federation account stands at N6, 969,326,466.31 and N4, 736,035,249.58 amounting to N11, 705,361715.58 is far less than one of the four oil producing States (Akwa Ibom) which nets a monthly allocation of N13, 806,440,977.24. Activities of the major Nigerian political parties are funded from the public treasury, through various guises.

And analysts said the four super rich States are the entities with strong enough financial muscle capable of nursing PDP back as the number one political party in Nigeria. But the gubernatorial elections in three of the States- Delta, Rivers and Akwa Ibom have also been described as some of the worst conducted. And there are fears that the various legal challenges against them in the Election Petition Tribunal by the APC and other candidates may succeed.

The worst fear of PDP is that the Tribunals may order a re-run of the elections.

And with Zakari and Daura in charge of INEC and DSS respectively, the PDP feels it will not have a chance in such polls, especially when it is realized that PDP victories in those states in the 2015 elections was partly achieved through deployment of strong arm tactics, intimidation of opposition and collusion with officials of INEC, said a source.

“The fear of the possibility of the loss of the rich states to the opposition and the potential consequences for the party is at the root of the current noise being made by Metuh and other PDP officials noted an analyst.

Whether it is complaints about the tribunals, the INEC Chairman or the DG of DSS, PDP is really battling for its survival.