Despite being a member of the Peoples’ Democratic Party Governors’ Forum, the Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi for the first time attended a meeting of the forum yesterday as he finally recognized the existence of the forum and its leadership by Akwa Ibom State Governor, Godswill Akpabio.
The PDP Governors’ Forum was held after a meeting of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, which Amaechi heads, and attended by 19 out of the 36 state governors. However, no communiqué was issued after the 4-hour meeting which ended at about 10pm.
Amaechi, however, was noticeably absent after the PDP Governors’ Forum meeting amongst his colleagues when Akpabio was addressing a rowdy crowd among him full of journalists.
The relationship among PDP governors has been strained since the creation of the Forum with Akpabio as Chairman, while Jigawa State Governor, Sule Lamido and Amaechi refusing to recognize the Forum’s existence.
Lamido and Amaechi are rumoured to be on a ticket preparing to challenge President Goodluck Jonathan for the presidential ticket of the party in 2015, while Akpabio is seen as executing the strategies of the Presidency to whittle down Amaechi’s influence in the very powerful NGF.
The rift between Amaechi and the party took a turn for the worse with the sacking of the Rivers State executive loyal to Amaechi by Justice Ishaq Bello of the Abuja High Court. Within 24 hours, a new executive had already been sworn in.
In his press briefing, Akpabio said the governors of the PDP had resolved to win more states for the party in the 2015 general elections. This is just as he said that the crisis of the PDP in the South West would soon come to an end with the reconciliation efforts of the Ibrahim Shema committee.
Akpabio also revealed that the PDP governors had mapped out strategies to end the Boko Haram menace in Nigeria, expressing hope that if the report of theMurtala Nyako committee it set up was implemented, the menace of youth restiveness across the country would be brought to an end.
It was also gathered that the governors could not hold discussions due to the passing on the Ekiti State governor, Mrs. Funmilayo Olayinka, and that of the former deputy governor of Benue State, OgiriAjene, in addition to the Baga killings. The mood at the meeting was said to be somber.
It was learnt that some of the governors later move to the Aso Villa to meet with the president.
About 16 governors of the PDP attended the gathering. They include governors from Niger, Bayelsa, Ebonyi, Adamawa, Plateau, Katsina, Abia, Benue, Kebbi, Bauchi, Rivers, Akwa Ibom, Delta, Kogi and the acting governor of Taraba. The governors of Sokoto, Jigawa and Enugu were notably absent.