24th June, 2011
Since the Southwest Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, lost its House of Representatives Speakership position, the region’s leadership of the party has been having sleepless nights.
There has been intense battle to ensure the region’s relevance in the nation’s politics once again.
The Southwest leaders see the emergence of Hon. Aminu Tambuwal from the Northwest as a stab on the back.
They blame the national leadership of the party for this. They feel the leadership did not do enough to whip the PDP supporters of Tambuwal into line.
They expressed appreciation to those who, despite pressure, still went ahead to vote for the Southwest candidate, Mulikat Adeola-Akande.
Now, with almost all key positions lost, the Southwest leadership of the party is fighting to have the region compensated with the chairmanship of the party.
They are doing this banking on President Jonathan’s support. They are of the belief that having given him overwhelming backing in the April presidential election, he should make this payback time.
Political analysts believe that since the party had zoned the Speakership to the Southwest, it is up to it to enforce compliance, especially because the key positions have been shared between the Southwest and the North.
But could the Southwest have the post of the PDP national chairman? A source within the top echelon of the party doubts it very much.
The source put the chairmanship of the party beyond the Southwest, saying the opposition Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, which is now the dominant party in the Southwest will not want another competing power centre after the PDP board chairmanship post held by former President Olusegun Obasanjo, adding that the ACN is enough opposition already.
This brings to mind the funny attitude of members of the House of Representatives in the countdown to the eventual election of Tambuwal as the house speaker.
Many observers had wondered why members from the Southwest so enthusiatically supported Tambuwal against their fellow Southwestener, Mulikat Adeola-Akande.
Indeed, the election of Tambuwal by 252 votes to Mulikat’s 90 showed a collaboration with ACN, the second largest party in th House of Representatives with its roots in the Southwest, to give Tambuwal victory.
PDP has 207 members in the House. Members of the ACN happily contributed their numerical strength to that of the dissident PDP members to vote Tambuwal.
In effect, ACN was a major reason PDP failed to get Mulikat elected.
