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Aso Rock boils again

The cloud of animosity engulfing the Presidency thickened further yesterday with politicians loyal to Vice President Atiku Abubakar expressing fierce opposition to the decision of the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to hold a non-elective convention in November.

The cloud of animosity engulfing the Presidency thickened further yesterday with politicians loyal to Vice President Atiku Abubakar expressing fierce opposition to the decision of the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to hold a non-elective convention in November.

They vowed to resist the plan to elongate the tenure of Ahmadu Ali-led national exco by a "kangaroo method".
The yesterday's rabber-rattling came even as more insights emerged on how President Olusegun Obasanjo's "veto" ensured the suspension of Governor Joshua Dariye of Plateau State from the party.
After the NEC meeting Friday, the highlights of the resolutions announed by the party National Secretary and Publicity Secretary, Chief Ojo Maduekwe and John Odey respectively, include the convention for November and

Dariye's suspension.
Contrary to the expectations of some, the much-awaited convention, according to the party spokesperson, would merely be ceremonial. A step interpreted by observers as a deft move by the Obasanjo camp to ensure that loyalists like the national chairman, Dr. Ahmadu Ali and Maduekwe remain in office, thereby preserving the President's perceived stranglehold on the party leadership, thus weakening the position of Atiku who is widely seen to be nursing the ambition to succeed his boss come 2007.

But speaking to Sunday Sun yesterday, Atiku loyalists vowed to resist the plan, insisting that the elongation of the tenure of the present office-holders at the national secretariat by any means is unconstitutional.
"We have looked at the party's constitution. There is nowhere in the constitution where it is stated that any office-holder can retain his portfolio simply by affirmation at the national convention," said a close aide to the vice president.
Options being considered by the Atiku camp, Sunday Sun gathered, include seeking legal remedies against the party leadership should it press ahead with arrangements to make the convention non-elective.
The new war-cry of Atiku's men, it seems, is a continuation of a battle lost by the vice president at the Friday NEC meeting to convince the assembly on the need to ensure that the present party office-holders test their popularity at the November convention.
According to inside sources, following a lobby by pro-Obasanjo elements at the meeting to make the gathering adopt the proposal that the convention be non-elective, Atiku took the microphone and stoutly cautioned against such a suggestion.

The vice president reportedly argued that by the constitution, the tenure of Ali and co ends in November. He was said to have, therefore, warned that if election was not held as and when due, a dangerous signal would inadvertently be sent to the nation at large.
It was at this juncture that the the president reportedly applied "native intelligence" by praising the vice president for his timely counsel, but, in turn, still proposed that the present office-holders be returned by "affirmation" to fulfil all "constitutional righteousness."
Following the report of the Secretary to the party Board of Trustees, Professor Jerry Gana, that Governor Dariye be left alone pending the determination of the his case in court, Obasanjo was said to have drawn attention to what he described as the incalculable damage being done to the image of the party and, by extention, the nation at large by the fact that the Plateau governor had already been declared wanted by Interpol.

A national sensation was caused last year following the arrest and detention of Dariye in London over allegations of money laundering. The incident happened just when he was still on suspension following the imposition of emergency rule in Plateau. But he managed to evade the British police and found his way to Nigeria.
"The president swayed sentiments at the meeting against Dariye by saying that everywhere he travels nowadays, the question people keep asking is whether he is from the country where a governor is wanted by Interpol," said a party chieftain who was at the NEC meeting.
based on Obasanjo's submission, it was gathered, a decision was reached to put Dariye on suspension pending the outcome of the court case.

That put paid to a case earlier made for Dariye by Chief Richard Akinjide, a renowned lawyer, who reportedly had counselled on the need for caution.
Akinjide, it was learnt, had advised the party bigwigs against throwing Dariye out of their fold saying that in the long run, it would not augur well. Akinjide was said to have argued further that since Dariye was assumed to have carried a diplomatic passport when the incident happened in London, it was improper for the British police to have arrested him in the first place.
Meanwhile, a pro-Atiku group, Turaki Vanguard, has warned those they described as "Vice-presidential aspirants" from the North-East geo-political zone that there is no Vee-Pee vacancy in Aso Rock.
The group said it was not oblivious of plans by a number of people out to use the face-off between Atiku and Obasanjo to feather their political ambition.

The Director of Media of the vanguard, Chief Eze Chukwuemeka, also questioned the legitimacy of the National Working Committee, NWC, of the ruling PDP, describing them as self-appointed individuals who were not speaking the minds of the party.
"Those who are dreaming of the office of the Vice-president should better go and look for something else to do, because the office of the Vice-president is not vacant and will not be vacant until May 29, 2007."

OBJ'a cold shoulders for Atiku
Interestingly, at the friday meeting, the hue and cry over the altercation between the President and the VP did not feature at Friday's NEC. Sources said at the BOT meeting which preceded the NEC meeting the issue of the ‘war' between the president and the VP was raised but quickly dismissed as rumour which should not be dignified with any further mention.
But a mild drama took place when Obasanjo arrived at the NEC venue on Friday. The VP had arrived ostensibly to receive the president. So alongside the party chairman, they stood waiting for the president. When the president alighted from his car the two men went to welcome him.
He extended the tip of his finger to merely touch the VP's palm while he concentrated on exchanging pleasantries with Ali and thereafter kept a straight face as they walked into the hall.
In fact, after the meeting, Odey, party spokesman simply said "I read the agenda of today's meeting to you and as you can see the question you ask was not on the agenda," when asked if the problem between the president and the VP was mentioned.
Governors in attendance were Chief George Akume of Benue State, Alhaji Abdullahi Adamu of Nassarawa, Abdukadir Kure of Niger, Gbenga Daniel of Ogun.
Mr. Boni Haruna of Adamawa state, Alhaji Ahmed Makarfi of Kaduna, Dr. Chimaroke Nnamani of Enugu state, Mr.Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti state, Dr. Segun Agagu of Ondo state, Dr Bukola Saraki of Kwara state, Alhaji
Ibrahim Idris of Kogi state, Chiefs Lucky Igbinedion and James Ibori of Edo and Delta states were also in attendance.
As it were, the much- touted epic battle between pro-Obasanjo and pro-Atiku forces didn't hold after all. The two camps simply sheath their swords, perhaps to fight another day.