Anti- Buni, Secondus protests rock APC, PDP

*Why security was reinforced at national secretariat- CECPC scribe

*6 NWC members sign Secondus resignation order

*PDP Govs harp on unity, to meet with BoT, NASS Caucus, others today

Tunde Opalana, Tom Okpe, Abuja

Leadership crisis rocking the two major political parties continued unabated as protesters on Monday stormed the national secretariats of both the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to demand resignation of Mai Mala -Buni and Prince Uche Secondus, chairmen of both parties respectively.

While armed policemen cordoned the national secretariat of the APC to safeguard the Buni- led National Caretaker Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee (CECPC), scores of youths stormed the PDP Wadata headquarters demanding Secondus resignation.

About five Hilux van load of armed policemen blocked entrance to the Buhari House, APC Secretariat in anticipation of a report that some group of people had been mobilised to stage a protest against the Mai Mala Buni-led National Caretaker Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee.

According to an anonymous source, “the Mai Mala Buni leadership of the ruling party is illegal and must be rejected with all vehemence.”

The trigger-friendly and battle-ready Police operatives completely cordoned off the stretch of the ever busy Blantyre Street where the APC National Secretariat is situated for several hours, creating a state of pandemonium for staff, journalists and other early visitors.

Briefing journalists on the incidence, APC Caretaker Committee Secretary, John-James Akpanudoedehe, said the presence of the Police at the National Secretariat was to strengthen the leadership of Buni as the Caretaker Chairman of the APC.

The Party Secretary revealed that the party called for more deployment of Police to the National Secretariat to protect lives and properties, following a security report available to the leadership.

“APC cannot be embarrassed because this is a national government, therefore we take measures to forestall any happening. We cannot under estimate security report, we cannot play down on it.

“We have a security report, we can’t take laws into our hands; you can’t expect us to call thugs to defend the National Secretariat.

The right thing to do is to inform the Police and the DSS that they may know who ever gave the report.

“We are going to take measures. The next measure we want to take is, if you don’t have your face mask, we are going to start testing people now because of the Delta variant.

“You will not be able to come to the National Secretariat. That doesn’t mean that the force has taken over the Secretariat because of extension of Covid-19. So that is what it is. It’s a measure to protect lives and property.

“For instance, if you have a protest and you, as a media man is killed or brutalized, it will be a big news that somebody has been shot at the National Secretariat of the APC.

“It is our responsibility as managers of this party to put measures to protect everyone here,” he said.

Also as a handful number of youths carrying banners and placards with inscriptions calling for the removal of the PDP National Chairman thronged the party’s Wadata Plaza national secretariat early Monday morning.

The protesters, made up of different supports groups in the party, under the banner of Save PDP Group and Coalition of PDP Youth Groups, were seen holding banners and placards while chanting “Secondus Must Go”.

The leader of the protest, Comrade Tamunotonye Inioribo, who addressed the press, accused Secondus of polarising the party for his own selfish interest, and being responsible for the defection of three governors and dozens of other top notch members from the party.

He decried that under Uche Secondus, the Governors Forum, National Working Committee and all organs are divided.

Tamunotonye also accused the Chairman of creating factions in states for his own selfish ambition.

He further revealed that Secondus crippled every department of the party.

They were believed to be mobilised by the National Youth Leader, SK Ude-Okoye, who had last Tuesday at a press conference called for Secondus resignation.

However, the crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) got messier as news of resignation order handed down on the National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus, by six members of the National Working Committee broke on Monday.

The purported resignation order was said to have been taken at a meeting on Sunday in Abuja in which six out of the nine members in attendance signed the request for Secondus to back down.

Both the meeting and decisions taken were however waved aside by the National Legal Adviser, Barrister Emmanuel Enoidem as illegal, null and void.

Also, the PDP House of Representatives Caucus was divided as a faction led by Hon. Ndudi Elumelu disowned statement by the Caucus leader, Hon. Kingsley Chinda, calling on Secondus to resign.

An unsigned press statement said the NWC was held on Sunday August 8, 2021 at the Transcorp Hilton hotel in Abuja to further deliberate on the matter bedeviling the party.

It was said that at the meeting, nine members of the National Working Committee (NWC) agreed that the National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus “has grossly mismanaged the party, highly incompetent, factionalized the party and has lost the confidence of members of the party.

“The matter of his resignation was put to vote, 6 members voted that he should resign and 3 members abstained from voting.

“Therefore the meeting resolved to forward the resolution taken on the 8th day of August to the Governors Forum, the BOT, the National Assembly Caucus of both House of Reps and the Senate.

“We call on all members of the party to remain calm as the party leadership is working tirelessly to resolve the leadership crisis”.

According to the statement, in attendance were Sen. Suleiman Nazif- Deputy National Chairman (North), Sen. Umar Ibrahim Tsauri – National Secretary, Alhaji Mai Adamu Mustapha – National Auditor, Abdulahi Maibasira – National Financial Secretary, Rt. Hon. S.K.E. UdehOkoye -National Youth Leader, Amb. Taofiq Arapaja – National Vice Chairman (SW), Chief Dr. Ali Odefa – National Vice Chairman (SE), Chief Dan Osi Orbih – National Vice Chairman (SS) and Chief Theophilus Dakas, National Vice Chairman (NC).

The statement added that those who voted in favour that Prince Uche Secondus should resign were Sen. Suleiman Nazif – deputy national chairman (N), Alhaji Mai Adamu Mustapher -National Auditor, Rt. Hon. S.K.E Udeh- Okoye, Amb. Taofiq Arapaja – national vice chairman (SW), Chief Dan Orbih, national vice chairman (SS) and Chief Dr. Ali Odefa, national vice chairman (SE).

Though the statement was not signed, a member of the NWC present at the meeting, Chief Ali Odefa reportedly confided in a reporter that he was part of the meeting, signed the resignation order and is ready to sign again if called to do so.

Faulting the purported resignation order by the six NWC members, the National Legal Adviser, Emmanuel Enoidem, said the meeting held by the nine NWC members was not properly constituted and any decision taken thereof could not bind on the party.

Enoidem stated that “By Section 29 (3) of the constitution of our party, it is the national chairman or a summon backed by 2/3 members of the NWC that can validly convene a meeting of the NWC.

Subsection (4) provides for 2/3 members of NWC to form a quorum for a meeting of the NWC.

The Legal Adviser warned that “this bad press caused the party at this critical time is most uncalled for, needless and wanton and must be discontinued if we are mindful of the interest of the party”.

Also, the Minority Leader, House of Representatives, Hon. Ndudi Elumelu, in a statement, denied the meeting of the House Caucus during which decision was taken on Secondus.

He described publications on the outcome of the so-called meeting as false and misleading.

Elumelu, in a statement Monday, said:

“The publication is indeed embarrassing to PDP lawmakers in the House of Representatives, as no such meeting took place.

“For the avoidance of doubt, no online meeting or any meeting in any form whatsoever of PDP members in the House of Representatives was held, to discuss, let alone arrive at any decision regarding the National Chairman or any issue related to the disagreements in the PDP.

“Our caucus in the House of Representatives is fully aligned with the intervention and decisions of the Board of Trustees (BoT); the elders and leaders of our party, in finding solutions to the leadership challenges confronting our great party and we await the outcome of their intervention.

“While we caution those behind this false and misleading publication to retrace their steps and desist from such, we also urge our party leaders, critical stakeholders, PDP members, teeming supporters and the general public to completely disregard the said publication.

“We call on all PDP members to remain calm and focused as the elders and leaders of the party will come out with solutions at this critical time”.

However, the National Chairman insisted that he will not bow to pressure to step down of office.

A statement by his media aide, Ike Abonyi quoted Secondus as saying “I will not resign”.

Prince Secondus said in a short statement from his media office that nothing so far warrants his resignation from the party position and those tiny minority calling for his resignation should come clean and tell party members across the country his offence why he should resign.

He said he will remain focused and committed to the ideals of the party which he swore to protect and defend upon his election to lead this great party 44 months ago.

Meanwhile, governors elected on the platform of the party rose from a six hours meeting at the Akwa Ibom Governor’s Lodge, Abuja on Monday to endorse further unity and harmony in the party.

Chairman of the PDP Governors Forum and Governor of Sokoto State, Aminu Tambuwal, who briefed the media, at 5.07 pm said: “As you can see we are just coming out of our emergency meeting where we discussed extensively issue of the moment in our party and we agreed to continue to work together in unity.

“The meeting continues tomorrow (today) with other stakeholders in the party, the BoT, the National Assembly Caucus and Nigerians will hear the outcome’”.

Tambuwal tactically evaded questions on whether the Forum passed a vote of confidence on the embattled National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus.

The national chairman made a 40 minutes appearance at the meeting before he was ushered out by Akwa Ibom State governor, Emmanuel Udom, at 4.53pm.

Secondus briefly told inquisitive journalists that “I have said that I will not resign”.