The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has again successfully steered its ship out of rocky point with an amicable decision reached among governorship aspirants in Adamawa State on the coming primaries of the party.
Former chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Nuhu Ribadu and seven other aspirants among the seven who agreed to shelf their aspiration in an arrangement that would give them the leeway in the 2015 contest.
As a result of suave political maneuvering by the party anchored by the Senate President, David Mark, the seven aspirants agreed to step down from the race in the early hours of Friday.
The decision was reached following a meeting between the aspirants and Mark and members of the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party to douse tension generated by the large number of aspirants preparing for the primaries to be held Saturday.
After about four hours meeting with the aspirants that started by 9.06 p.m on Thursday and ended around 1.00 a.m on Friday at the Banquet Hall of
the State House, Mark along with other officials of the party were able to reach a compromise with the aspirants and pruned down the number of those contesting to six.
The six aspirants still in the race for the party’s ticket are Ahmed Gulak, Buba Marwa, Ahmed Modibbo, Dr. Umar Ardo, Acting Governor Umaru Fintiri, and Jerry Kumdisi.
Those who have withdrawn from the Saturday primary election include Nuhu Ribadu; Auwal Tukur; Aliyu Idi Hong, Andrawus Sawa; James Barka; Gen. Aliyu Kama; Markus Gundiri and Abubakar Girei. It was agreed at the closed-door meeting that the six aspirants contesting for the party’s ticket on Saturday would not contest for the position in 2015.
The meeting which was held at the banquet hall of the presidential Villa Abuja started at about 10pm and ended in the early hours of Friday.
.Under the new arrangement, those who will take part in the primaries scheduled for saturday are the former Political Adviser to President Jonathan, Ahmed Gulak; former Military administrator of Lagos state, Buba Marwa, Ahmed Modibbo, Dr. Umar Ardo, Acting Governor Umaru Fintiri, and Jerry Kumdisi.
Those who have withdrawn from Saturday primary election include Nuhu Ribadu; Auwal Tukur; Aliyu Idi Hong, Andrawus Sawa; James Barka; Gen. Aliyu Kama; Markus Gundiri and Abubakar Girei.
The crux of the decision at the meeting is that only those that stepped down now can contest for the party’s governorship election ticket in 2015, with more consideration to be given to Adamawa Central senatorial district which had never produced a governor of the state.
Any aspirant who fails to win the party’s ticket in Saturday’s primary election, the meeting, also agreed must support the party’s flag bearer in the October 11th election.
The Chairman of the Adamawa State chapter of the party, Joel Madaki told State House correspondents at the end of the meeting, that “Fourteen aspirants contesting for the position earlier has now reduced to six aspirants due to this meeting. It is a very welcome idea. Nobody was forced to step them. Those who stepped down did so voluntarily in order to wait to contest for the position in 2015.
“The six aspirants contesting this election are Ahmed Gulak, Buba Marwa, Ahmed Modibbo, Dr. Umar Ardo, Acting Governor Umaru Fintiri, and Jerry Kumdisi.”
It was not clear whether there will be any document agreement committing whoever that will emerge governor of the state from using the coercive power of incumbency to twist the decision.
Chairman of the Adamawa State chapter of the party, Joel Madaki, told the State House correspondents that nobody was coerced into his decision.He said, “Fourteen aspirants contesting for the position earlier has now reduced to six aspirants due to this meeting. It is a very welcome idea. Nobody was forced to step them. Those who stepped down did so voluntarily in order to wait to contest for the position in 2015.”
“The six aspirants contesting this election are Ahmed Gulak, Buba Marwa, Ahmed Modibbo, Dr. Umar Ardo, Acting Governor Umaru Fintiri, and Jerry Kumdisi.” He added The former Special Adviser to the President on Political Affairs, Ahmed Gulak, who is contesting for the ticket on Saturday, said: “The outcome of the meeting was fantastic.
We met as family members of PDP, even before coming here all the aspirants in Adamawa have unanimously resolved that after the primaries, in a free, fair primaries, anybody that emerges will get our support.”
“Today, in this meeting, the number of the aspirants have been drastically reduced to six, which is manageable. I am contesting, Gen. Marwa is contesting, Ahmed Modibbo is contesting, Dr. Umar Ardo is contesting, Hon. Jerry Kumdisi is contesting, and Acting Governor Fintiri is contesting.”
“And we have resolved to go into the primaries without rancour, without acrimony and to come out of it as peaceful co-existing members.”
“And at the end of it all, anybody that emerges, we will all queue behind him. And if I emerge as the candidate, they will all queue behind me. It is going to be a family affair and there will be no loser.”
On his chances of getting the ticket as Ribadu and others are now out of the race, he said: “Nuhu Ribadu or not, you know, I prepared for this election. Even, if 14 of us are going into this election, I am confident of my ability, of my capability, of my mobilization, of my sensitization that the delegates will select me.”
Aliyu Idi Hong, who is among those who withdrew from the race, said: “Peace-building, negotiation, give-and-take, everything went well. We have been given a caveat and one thing we have succeeded in extracting from this meeting is that the meeting started with a preamble that whoever is going to contest and if he happens to win as a governor, he will not have the right to contest the 2015 election.”
“Some of us think that our aspirations, our ambition, our vision for Adamawa is a long term and more articulate vision and not a stop-gap six months aspiration.” “For that reason, we saw it is wiser that if you are going to do something to change the fortune of Adamawa, you need a longer period of time. So, we decided that it is not wise for you to go into this aspiration for six months.” He said, adding: “Two, we have also been able to have on record, that whoever is going to emerge as
governor will not contest in 2015 and it has also been unanimously agreed that because Adamawa Central has not been able to produce governor of the state before, it is on record that the Presidency and the party has accepted that the aspiration for the PDP nomination for 2015 will be strictly for contestants from Adamawa Central. It is not negotiable.”
The former Special Adviser to the President on Political Affairs, Ahmed Gulak, who is contesting for the ticket on Saturday, appluaded the decision arrived at the meeting as ‘fantastic’.
“The outcome of the meeting was fantastic. We met as family members of PDP, even before coming here all the aspirants in Adamawa have unanimously resolved that after the primaries, in a free, fair primaries, anybody that emerges will get our support.”
“Today, in this meeting, the number of the aspirants have been drastically reduced to six, which is manageable. I am contesting, Gen. Marwa is contesting, Ahmed Modibbo is contesting, Dr. Umar Ardo is contesting, Hon. Jerry Kumdisi is contesting, and Acting Governor Fintiri is contesting.”
“And we have resolved to go into the primaries without rancour, without acrimony and to come out of it as peaceful co-existing members.”
“And at the end of it all, anybody that emerges, we will all queue behind him. And if I emerge as the candidate, they will all queue behind me. It is going to be a family affair and there will be no losers” he said.
Former Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Dr Aliyu Idi Hong, who is among those who withdrew from the race also expressed satisfaction with the decisions reached.
“Peace-building, negotiation, give-and-take, everything went well. We have been given a caveat and one thing we have succeeded in extracting from this meeting is that the meeting started with a preamble that whoever is going to contest and if he happens to win as a governor, he will not have the right to contest the 2015 election.”
“Some of us think that our aspirations, our ambition, our vision for Adamawa is a long term and more articulate vision and not a stop-gap six month” he said.
