Emeka Oraetoka

Garki – Abuja, Nigeria

Sunday, January 16, 2005

Two weeks after the presidential primary of People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Dr. Alex Ekwueme headed for the high court to seek the reversal of that election. An Abuja high court ruled that there was no urgency in Ekwueme’s suit to warrant the cancellation of that primary. The trial judge reasoned that Ekwueme should have rushed down to the court immediately that election result was announced. The trial judge therefore, threw out Ekwueme’s suit. The trial judge was silent on the points raised by Ekwueme in that suit. The only reason that can be deduced from the silence of that Judge was that Ekwuem’s case as it were, has merit but judgement in his favour not enforceable. For instance, if Ekwueme was given judgement in that suit, who will enforce the order? Will PDP now say, Okay gentlemen, let us repeat the primary?

The position of this writer is that it will be much more easier for the camel to pass through the eye of the needle than for PDP to reverse itself on any internal matter which position had been taken. The other time, Dr. Barnabas Gemade-led PDP leadership expelled the publicity secretary, Chief Gbenga Olawepo. Olawepo sought refuge in the law court. The court gave him judgement. His lawyer, Femi Falana, took the court order to PDP headquarters for enforcement; the party reaffirmed the expulsion of Gbenga Olawepo. In the end, Olawepo discovered that the decision of the party was final and irrevocable. He had no choice than to resign to fate. In the heat of the fight between Gamade-led executive and Tony Anenih, the undisputed leader of PDP, Gbenge Olawepo was called back to the party. The point being made here is that internal party politics is dictatorship, simple. Whatever the party says remains irrevocable and final, that is how internal discipline is maintained.

It will be recalled that during the last primary election in Jigawa state, Basher Dalhatu had gone to court to challenge the candidature of Saminu Turaki. An Abuja high court actually gave him judgement. ANPP, in return, dismissed Dalhatu from the party and presented Saminu Turaki as their candidate in the general elections. Today, Saminu Turaki remains the governor of Jigawa State. Recently, the absolute power of a political party manifested in National Democratic Party (NDP): Senator Ike Omar Sanda Nwachukwu was dismissed from the party, notwithstanding his position as the presidential flag bearer of the party in the last election. Charles Nwodo-led Progressive Action Congress (PAC), also threw Sarah Jubril out of their party. The list is endless.

Party absolutism is not peculiar to Nigeria alone, parties in other advanced democratic nations like USA and Britain have their fair share of impetuousness. Tribunal action against one's party is just academic exercise; judgement obtained is not enforceable. In Anambra State, the tribunal had given judgement to the duo of Nicolas Ukachukwu and Ben Obi so far, against the duo of Senator Ugochukwu Uba and Senator Ikechukwu Abana. Going by the current trend of judgement, Mrs. Joy Emordi, the third litigant is likely to receive judgement in her favour from this same tribunal. The simple inference from the judgements so far is that the recipients of these judgements have successfully taken their party to court and won. In other words, they have humiliated their party. They can now walk up to their party and say, "We have dealt with you; next time, don’t try us." Although one of the petitioners, shortly after the judgement, said he actually took INEC to tribunal and not his party. This statement sounds fine, but when one critically looks at issues on ground, it will be discovered that PDP was a respondent in the tribunal. The question now is: Why joining PDP in the petition? By joining PDP in the case, have they, the petitioners not taken the party to court by extension? The implication of PDP obeying tribunal judgement arising from internal dispute is that floodgate of litigations by aggrieved party members will be opened. This scenario could damage the internal cohesion of the party. Igbo intellectuals in PDP may come up with a powerful argument that PDP is anti-Igbo. They may ask: Why is PDP adopting different standard for the same problem because there is no difference between Obasanjo and Ekweme on one hand, and Dr. Uba and co. against Ukachukwu and co. on the other hand; PDP’s acceptance in the Southeast and associated areas could be threatened as a result.

On the likely reason why PDP substituted the names of initial candidates in the senatorial election prior to the elections, Nicolas Ukachukwu, for instance, was a member of the House of Representative, representing AMAC and Buari federal constituency. He is believed to be unpopular in Anambra South; in a nutshell, he has no base. On the other hand, Senator Ugochukwu Uba is a card-carrying member of PDP in Anambra South, with a solid base there. The national executive of PDP reasoned that it might amount to injustice to allow somebody who is not based in Anambra to represent the party in general elections, hence the presentation of Ugochukwu Uba as PDP’s flagbearer in Anambra South.

The case of Ben Obi is an interesting one. In the first place, he used to be a card-carrying member of ANPP. He only crossed over to PDP when he was dismissed from ANPP by the then caretaker Chairman, Atahiru Bafarawa. His endorsement would have strengthened the argument that PDP used the appointment of opposition parties’ members to keep them permanently divided and to ensure one-party state. Another argument against Obi is that upon his dismissal from ANPP, he led others to challenge their expulsion and since the case is still pending in court, invariably, he has one leg in ANPP and the other in PDP. Besides, his entry into PDP was within a short period of time. Since PDP was interested in victory, they could not guarantee his candidature. For Joy Emordi, she too crossed over to PDP; there was no evidence of grassroots support and mobilization on her part. PDP equally adopted Emma Anosike, who incidentally represented his constituency in the House of Representatives previously.

The greatest mistake the trio of Ukachukwu, Obi, and Ermodi made was to take the plunge and go to the tribunal, when they saw the handwriting on the wall. One had expected them as loyal party members to know that PDP had made up its mind on the election of Ugochukwu Uba and co. If PDP had wanted Obi and co. to continue with their case at the tribunal, they would have halted the swearing in of Uba and co., but the reverse was the case. The trio of Obi, Emordi, and Ukachukwu should have resigned to faith. One had expected them to address a press conference accepting the election of Uba and co. Supposing they did this, they would have successfully warmed themselves back to the heart of PDP; the party would have given considerations to them in political appointments.

As things stand now, it will take the magnanimity of PDP to accept them back, as they stand dismissed from the party. It will be recalled that when Ukachukwu and co. became a torn in the flesh of PDP, the party reportedly proclaimed them dismissed. Now, supposing for the purpose of argument that Nicolas is to take over form Ugochukwu Uba in the Senate, under which political platform would he be going to the National Assembly, considering that he remained dismissed from PDP? Hear Obi: “From this judgement it is very clear in my mind that the judiciary still remains the last hope for the oppressed, the last hope for the denied, the last hope for those who seek justice.” The point is who oppressed Obi: INEC or PDP or Abana, who was presented by his party? INEC cannot proclaim Abana winner without the consent of his party. If Obi believes Abana stole his mandate, according to report, he can as well recast the statement thus: PDP stole my mandate and gave it to Abana.

Interestingly, both Senator Abana and Akpamgbo, the counsel to Ben Obi, seem to be saying the same thing as regard who the authentic representative is between him (Abana) and Obi. For instance, if this writer says, a glass cup is half empty, and another fellow says, the same glass cup is half full, we are basically saying the same thing. Coming down to their statements on who the authentic PDP candidate in the election was, according to Abana, “What happened in Anambra State is purely a party business. It is not for the tribunal to tell the party which candidate it should field in an election.” Akpamgbo, on the other hand, “told the tribunal that the matter before it was not that of being asked to choose a candidate for the party but to determine who contested the election between the petitioner and the respondent.” The difference between six and half a dozen is just in name. Now, who is in a better position to determine between the petitioner and respondent, who was presented for an election, the parent of both gladiators which PDP represents, or the tribunal? Your guess is as good as mine.

With respect to ANPP’s primary election tussle in Jigawa State, Saminu Turaki, appealed against the ruling of the high court. The appeal court ruled that it is not the duty of the court to determine for the party who their candidate(s) should be in an election. Now that the duo of Dr. Uba and Abana have gone to appeal court against the tribunal judgement, if I were Obi and Ukachukwu, I will address a press conference. Here, I will tell the whole world that I am not interested in the case any more. I will also accept the supremacy of the party and plead for mercy. If this position is too hard for them, they should as well quit the party. The appeal court judgement will certainly favour the duo of Dr. Uba and Abana, in accordance with the judicial precedent in Saminu Turaki vs Bashir Dalhatu.

Emeka Oraetoka, Information Management and Media Relations Consultant, writes in from Garki – Abuja.