The embittered splinter group of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), now known as the New PDP has insisted that there is no going back on its demand from the presidency in as bid to save the interest of the group and further equality and justice within the party.
According to the Chairman of the New PDP, Kawu Baraje, reconciliation attempts between the two part factions have hit the rock because Jonathan and a seven-man Peace Panel headed by ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo have only being able to meet only one out of five of its conditions.
Hence, the New PDP leaders with the G-7 governors declared the next meeting scheduled for Sunday as a deadline for the president to come to terms with the New PDP for peace to reign within the party.
To recall, the conditions according to Baraje include the following; the sack of National Chairman Bamanga Tukur; return of party structure to governors in Adamawa, Rivers, Kano, and other states; sticking to one term tenure by the President by foregoing re-election in 2015; resolution of the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) and Rivers State crises, including the lifting of Governor Rotimi Amaechi’s suspension; as well as stopping “harassment” of governors by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission(EFCC).
Baraje told a reporter in Abuja in Abuja that the peace moves “are not inching towards any accord with Jonathan on the PDP crisis as there is no likelihood of a settlement” soon.
“I can tell you that we are only discussing, but the main thing is not being discussed yet.
“So, as far as we are concerned, the struggle still continues; no retreat, no surrender. Our demands are clear and we will not give up, until our demands are met.”
Responding to a question, Baraje said: “We will go back; we will partake in the talk on Sunday because we have been part of it all along.
“However, it is at the Sunday meeting that we are going to give them a deadline within which they should tell us their responses to our demands.
“Our struggle is for Nigerians and in the interest of Nigeria; it is a liberation struggle for Nigeria’s democracy.
“I want to assure our members that we will not give up on this struggle; we are not a let-down or a stooge for anybody, Baraje was quoted to have said.
The only demand said to have been met by the president out of the five is restoration of the party structures to governors in Adamawa and Kano while it was claimed that the presidency has been evasive on others due to Amaechi’s refusal to pay attention to the proposal from the presidency to step down as the chairman of Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF).
However , on his part, the former Governor of Kwara State, Senator Bukola Saraki claimed that the fight of the New PDP is basically geared towards efforts to save the country.
Saraki said: “it is wrong for people to say or think that what we are doing is a personal grouse and it is because the president is weak unlike former president Olusegun Obasanjo.
He noted that even if it were the former President there would have been a different kind of agitations as “things would be different because the environment is different”.
He also spoke on his recent invitation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), pointing out that he might still be summoned to defend his action on how he used the N17 billion bond obtained by his administration in 2010 as long as the PDP crisis continues.
He added that other issues could also be raisedby the agency subsequently considering the way polity is handled in the country.
He stated; “I was with EFCC on Monday and Tuesday to answer queries on the bond issue. I made it clear that bond is not money available to any government just like that; that to access it you must go through a rigorous process; that we had to submit ourselves to international evaluation before we could be given. I gave them details of how we spent the bond because if any government wants to be reckless it won’t be with a bond that has stringent conditions before you can access it. I listed the projects we used the money for and they are all verifiable.
“It is unfortunate that we all know what is happening today in Nigeria so I won’t be surprised if another agency wakes up tomorrow to say they have a new thing about me.”
“The projects include Aviation College, Irrigation project, Ilorin water reticulation, Township stadium, Rural electrification, KWASU, loan refunding and Kwara Mall”, he recalled.