Pressure mounts on Jonathan to drop Tukur

PRESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan is under pressure to dump the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Bamangar Tukur, as a precondition for peace in the party which is currently riddled with internal crisis, The PUNCH has learnt. Afraid that the Tukur issue with the governors who have insisted on winning their "Tukur-Must-Go" battle could further tear the party apart, Jonathan's close aides have reportedly joined the crusade for the President to part ways with the party national chairman. While sources in the Presidency indicated that Jonathan had not been happy with the demand for Tukur's removal, his aides were said to have continued to insist that it was the only way to go in saving the party from disintegration. Although the President was said to have agreed in principle that it might be neccessary for Tukur to go, sources in the Presidency said Jonathan had insisted on receiving the report of the new Chairman of the party's Board of Trustees, Chief Tony Anenih after his mediation tour of PDP states. "It is Anenih report that will determine the President's handling of requests for the chairman's removal. Though the initial reports from the on-going visit by Anenih to the governors have not been palatable, the President has inisisted that the BoT chairman's final report and advice is necessary before he knows what to do. You don't expect the man to quickly dump Tukur like that if only you remember that he (the President) facilitated the man's ascendancy,"  a reliable Presidency source told our correspondent in Abuja on Thursday. Anenih is currently on a tour of  the 23 PDP states  where he is interacting with the governors on how to strengthen the  party. His visit is also aimed at understanding the  grievances of the individual governors against the leadership of the party and the Presidency. The  BOT chairman has already visited Niger, Kano, Jigawa and Kano states. Investigations revealed on Thursday that the response Anenih  received from the governors of the four states and his contacts  with those  he is yet to visit    are  that Tukur must cease to be the PDP  national chairman. Anenih's visit to the states came few days after Tukur led members of the party's  National Working Committee  to the leaders of the  PDP   in the  six  geo-political zones. During Tukur's visit, a majority of the governors  refused to be part of the crowd that received  his team. However, Anenih has been able to meet with the governors, whom he  appealed to  not to ditch the party for the opposition. The  governors in turn told him  the problems facing the party, most of which they  traced to  the Tukur-led NWC. Governors of Niger, Kano, Jigawa and Kano states are being touted to be among those planning to defect to opposition political parties in the event that Jonathan and other leaders of the PDP failed to find urgent solutions to the crisis ravaging the party. Admitting that the  President was the one that imposed Tukur  on the party as chairman, the source said that Jonathan   would not want to witness PDP's  disintegration just because  of one person. The source said, "The President is waiting patiently for the BoT chairman to return and brief him about his findings. It is after that  that  a decision would be taken on whether to ask Tukur to resign or ask the entire members of the NWC to go. "We cannot wait and see the opposition coming up stronger while we are disintegrating  just because of the interest of one or two people. "The governors are important to the party and we all know this. The President is concerned and that was why he gave his full support to the Anenih  tour. The BoT chairman will come up with a report on his findings and complaints by the governors. It is after that that we will   know what to do. "But the response the BoT chairman is getting from the states is that Tukur must-go- for peace to reign in the party. The governors are bent on removing him as   national chairman of our party."  Already, members of the NWC are jittery following the tour  by Anenih and the support he is receiving from the governors. Some of the NWC members are said to be further worried because the elections that threw them up both at the zonal  and  national levels  were being queried by the Independent National Electoral Commission. "We are at the mercy of our BoT chairman now. Whatever he recommends may be used either for or against us," one of the NWC members said. He added that  their fear was heightened by the refusal of  Jonathan and the governors to continue to fund the party. Meanwhile, Tukur has said that a fresh congress will be held in the South-West  to elect a replacement for the former National Secretary of the party, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola. Oyinlola  was ousted by a court, which ruled that the zonal congress where he emerged as a candidate   was not a proper congress. The former Osun State governor, who appealed the  ruling, had since been replaced by  Chief Solomon Onwe in acting capacity. "The caretaker committee, which is currently in place in the zone will hold a fresh congress where a new secretary will be elected. It is a process and I can assure you that the office is not being taken away from the zone," Tukur said. On  the barrage of complaints he got from his  zonal tour, Tukur explained that  the NWC was studying them with a view to addressing them. Tukur said,  "All the voiced out grievances have been recorded and steps are being taken to address them. Suggestions have been noted and NWC will objectively consider them. "One recurring issue raised in almost all the zones was the question of non-appointment of party faithful to key   government positions. "I want to assure all those who hold that view that the party is mindful of their grievances and is taking steps to address them." Also in Abuja on Thursday, the  National Coordinator of the PDP, Amb. Ibrahim Aboki, advised the PDP governors   to support the ongoing reconciliation embarked upon by the party's  NWC and the BoT. Aboki said, "We  seek the understanding of the PDP governors in the ongoing reconciliation in the party. United we stand and divided we fail, and that  we see the reconciliation as the basic tool that will help the PDP maintain its leadership position in the country. "There is no need dissipating energy on crisis or planning to detect to another party, because the PDP is the only national party in the country. "We advise the PDP Governors' Forum led by Governor Godswill Akpabio to support the reconciliatory meetings of all the organs of the party so as to achieve the designed goal. "We are all aware of the proposed merger of the opposition parties under the aegis of the APC(All Progressives Congress). We should understand that most of these opposition political parties have ethnic, regional and sectional agenda." Punch