PDP Leadership Crisis Uche Secondus the Cat With 9 Lives, Set to Survive?

In 2017 when Uche Secondus was elected at the Eagles square in Abuja,
as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) National Working Committee
Chairman after a keenly contested election, there were lots of
expectations. 
Initially, he was praised and was also regarded as the best PDP
chairman ever as his tenure made PDP win more states as an opposition
party. 
At that early period, the only grouse, some of the politicians had against
him was that he did not seem to have the bite to tackle the ruling party.
As the leader of an opposition party, many stakeholders believed
strongly that if the party was to provide an effective opposition while at
the same timing positioning itself as a credible alternative, the party
chairman should evince enough drive, tact and strategy to keep the
President Mohammadu Buhari-led All Progressive Congress
Administration on its toes. 
Genesis of Secondus Travails 

Political analysts have traced the travails of Secondus to the differences
between him and the Rivers State Governor, Barrister Wike Nyesom. To
these analysts, the Wike-Secondus squabble started in December 2020
when, at a meeting with members of the National Working Committee of
the PDP, in Port Harcourt, Wike, not know for holding back his punches,
pointedly told the party executives that all of them would be sacked by
January 2021.

Wike’s position then may not have been unconnected with his failed
preference for Governor Aminu Tambuwal, over Atiku Abubakar, to be
the PDP flagbearer in the 2019 presidential elections, a failure which the
Governor attributed to Secondus. Efforts by some church and party
leaders to reconcile the two sides have failed to yield any meaningful
result, with Wike unrelenting in writing off Secondus and the NWC.
In the past few days, the friction between the duo has continued to
create anxiety within the party, ahead of its congress in December.
The Wike Factor Explained 
From all indications, Secondus survival in the political battle or defeat,
experts say is governed by two scenarios. 
On one side is Wike, backed by some governors and PDP leaders, to
sack Secondus and the NWC before their official exit date in December.
There is also Secondus leading his own supporters comprising some
governors, members of the PDP Board of Trustees and some party
leaders. This group is all out for his retention in office.

In addition, the alleged presidential or vice presidential ambition of Wike
in 2023 is another factor which has deepened the political cleavages
between the godfather and his godson. Secondus however, is said to be
“not too keen on Wike’s ambition.” Even at the intra-state level, there
exists lots of disagreements between the two. 
Nonetheless, Governor Wike, has denied any rift with Secondus. Stating
his position recently, the governor, who spoke through his Special
Assistant on Media, Kelvin Ebiri, insisted that there was no group he was
leading in the PDP to oust Secondus.
He simply said: “There is no such thing”.
Asked recently about the alleged rift between him and Secondus, Wike
said: “We must always disagree. Is that what people see as crisis?
“When we got to the local government, we said look, we can’t continue to
be this way; there is need to go the other way in order to carry everybody
along.

“You may agree, you may also disagree. If I have a problem with you, you
and I know that I will not hide my feelings; I will tell you.
“If there is anything tomorrow that Secondus is not doing well, I will tell
him. Is he God? Everybody who knows me knows that I don’t need to use
another person to fight anybody.
“There is no one born of a woman that I cannot say that before him. So,
you don’t need to insinuate, you know me very well.
“I am not in the category of Aliyu Babangida. He knows that very well. If
he is telling me that I have problem with Secondus, well Secondus has
not come to the state to tell us that we have problem. If we have
problem, we say yes.”

Alleged N10b Fraud 
Early May 2021, Kassim Afegbua, a former commissioner for
information in Edo State had accused Secondus of mismanaging the
sum of N10 billion that had allegedly accrued to the party from the sales
of nomination forms for the 2019 elections; a claim that was punctured
by the PDP spokesman, Kola Ologbondiyan who noted t hat the party
realised the sum of N4.6 billion and not N10 billion as alleged.
The dust thrown up by the allegation was potent enough to pull down the
PDP edifice. Secondus, through his lawyer, had demanded a retraction of
the publication, an apology and the payment of N1 billion as damages
for defaming his name. When Afegbua failed to retract the allegation,
Secondus, through his counsel, Emeka Etiaba, SAN, instituted a suit
asking the Federal High Court Abuja seeking a declaration that the
publication were false and malicious and that the allegation was
defamatory. Besides, he wanted the Court to compel Afegbua, among
other things to retract the story and pay to him N5 billion as damages
and in restitution for the injury he had suffered. Furthermore, Secondus
had prayed the Court for an order of perpetual injunction restraining the
defendants, their agents or privies from further publishing the
defamatory materials against Secondus.
Mass Resignation Over Secondus

Within the week, the Secondus crises deepened following the
resignation from office, of seven members of the National Executive
Committee of the Peoples’ Democratic Party.
The seven officers who resigned were Deputy National Publicity
Secretary, Diran Odeyemi; Deputy National Legal Adviser, Ahmed Liman;
Deputy Women Leader, Umoru Hadizat; Deputy Auditor, Divine Arong;
Deputy National Organising Secretary, Hassan Yakubu; Deputy Financial
Secretary, Irona Alphonsus and one other whose identity was not known.
In their separate resignation letters, the party officials cited “bad
treatment” by the PDP National Chairman, Uche Secondus as the reason
for their action.
Chairman of the PDP Deputy National Officers Forum, Diran Odeyemi,
who spoke from London said he aligned himself with the decision of his
colleagues “to resign.”
But analysts have opined that the resignations were contrived to create
problems with the leadership of Secondus. In fact, many reasons given
by these officers who resigned were that they could work with the PDP
chairman, another ploy to put spanner in the works.
Last Wednesday, former Governor of Bayelsa State, Senator Seriake
Dickson while calling for an emergency meeting to halt what he called an
imminent implosion in the party, nonetheless blamed the situation on
some leaders of the party. His words: “We have observed for some time
the growing tension, recriminations and outright attack on the National
Chairman and members of the National Working Committee by some
leaders of the party”.
Recalling that the party’s BOT members, governors and other elders had,
in keeping with the party’s internal mechanism of dispute resolution, had
been working “to resolve some of these disputes and challenges
affecting the stability of the party”, Dickson had called for an emergency
meeting before the situation could get to a point of no return.
However, as evidence of his frustration, he had prodded the National
Leadership of the party and the NWC, to wield the big stick if some
people remained intransigent. Again, his words: “The National Chairman
and the NWC members should utilise their powers under the constitution

to discipline erring members involved in nefarious plot to destroy then
party”.
“PDP”, he argued, “is bigger than any individual and should no longer
tolerate people with inordinate ambitions to destroy the party which
belongs to all Nigerians. People with ambition must know that unless
the party is stabilised and strengthened, their ambition will be of no
consequence even if they pocket it”.
Dickson warned that the dilemma that had befallen the ruling All
Progressive Congress (APC) in the aftermath of the creation of an
interim management committee should not be lost on the PDP. He said
rather than risk a protraction of the crisis with the likely exit of aggrieved
members, it would be better to exercise patience for the tenure of the
incumbent leadership to run out.
However, Dickson’s strong argument is countered by the PDP National
Youth Leader, Comrade S.K.E. Udeh-Okoye through his media aide, Okah
Ewah Edede who had reeled out the unforgivable sins of the party
Chairman, reputed for his fervent prayers. These include being
impervious to advise, failure to undertake any membership mobilisation
drive whether in a PDP or non-PDP, failure to manage the internal
conflicts and contradictions rocking the PDP astutely and wisely which,
in his view, “has led to mass defection of PDP leaders to the ruling APC,
thereby weakening the party”.
Like Dickson, but ironically, only for the sake of pointing out Secondus’
‘incorrigibility’, Udeh-Okoye averred that various leadership cadre of the
party had weighed in on the leadership style of Secondus but that the
chairman would not change those traits that those against him
complained about. It was for these reasons that he called on Secondus
to quit, and not for personal reasons.
Pro Wike Supporters 
For Wike, he has the support of his ally, Governor Aminu Waziri
Tambuwal, Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, a former National
Secretary of PDP Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola (who wants to be a
national chairman), some NWC members like the National Vice
Chairman South-South Chief Dan Orbih and Governor Godwin Obaseki.

Those Sitting On the Fence 
Those who are non-committal to either group or are yet to declare their
support for either position include but not limited to former Vice
President Namadi Sambo, ex-Presidents of the Senate (David Mark,
Anyim Pius Anyim, Adolphus Wabara and Bukola Saraki), most former
PDP national chairmen, Governor Emmanuel Udom and a few ex-
governors and aged members of the BOT.
“I think they are watching the situation. They know that after all the key
actors have exhausted themselves, they will use their wisdom and
experiences to resolve the crisis,” a political analyst said.
Relief At Last 
On the 5th of August, 2021, the Board of Trustees of the Peoples
Democratic Party met opposed moves to sack the Uche Secondus-led
National Working Committee and replace it with an interim caretaker
committee.
It was gathered that at a meeting, presided over by the board Chairman,
Senator Walid Jibrin, members insisted that the National Chairman,
Secondus, should be allowed to complete his tenure which would soon
end.

It was also learnt that the party leaders faulted what they termed as
uncomplimentary remarks by some party leaders, including the Rivers
State Governor, Nyesom Wike, against the NWC.
The board, according to sources, also berated Secondus over his
handling of crises in some state chapters of the party.
At Thursday’s BoT meeting, it was learnt that the seven NEC members
who resigned were asked to withdraw their resignation.
Inside sources disclosed that that members insisted that Secondus
should be allowed to complete his tenure.
It was gathered the meeting, which was held behind closed
doors, afforded party leaders the opportunity to speak frankly to one
another.

Possible Outcome 
Unfolding events in the past few days are pointing to the fact that
Secondus may at the end of the day come out victorious. As it is,
political pundits have warned the leadership of the party against sacking
the National Working Committee (NWC).
At the NWC meeting which held on the 6th of August, most stakeholders
are of the view that truncating the committee before the expiration of its
tenure, in three months, could plunge PDP into another round of crisis.
Even Secondus at the meeting pleaded that the misunderstanding
among stakeholders in the party should be resolved. 
As it is, Secondus may survive the numerous onslaughts that have hit
him from various quarters and might come out as the cat with nine lives
after all the political manoeuvres.