Politics

Why I Resigned As PDP BoT Chairman – Jibrin

Published

3 years ago

October 3, 2022

The immediate past chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Peoples Democratic Party, Senator Walid Jibrin, on Monday, opened up on why he resigned from his former position.

He said he resigned as the BOT chairman for the unity and oneness of the party, saying that “I created unity for the party.”

Jibrin declared that the decision was made to ensure the party’s presidential candidate emerged victorious in the 2023 elections.

He said, “We should never be sectional at all. If I left my position to allow others, based on my concern for Nigeria, and our party to be stronger, so, I have no regret of relinquishing my position.”

This is as he asked members of the just inaugurated Atiku-Okawa Presidential Campaign Council to immediately hit the ground running ahead of the 2023 presidential election.

According to Jibrin, in a statement released to journalists in Kaduna State, members of the just inaugurated PDP Presidential Campaign team should leave Abuja for their respective states, work and deliver votes for the party’s presidential candidate of the party, Atiku Abubakar in the 2023 presidency.

Jibrin, who was recently appointed to head the Nasarawa State Presidential Campaign Council, noted that members remaining in Abuja might not augur well for the party while assuring Nigerians that the PDP campaign would be issue-based.

This was as he assured that the current crises rocking the party, including that of Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, others were surmountable as “what is happening in the PDP” was a normal family matter.

Jibrin added that all the crises bedeviling the party ahead of the 2023 general election, would soon be a thing of the past.

“And I want to assure Nigerians that what is happening in PDP is never a problem but a normal family matter that would be solved very soon. Never, ever mention that PDP has any problem. We shall soon take over from the ruling party. Nigeria shall move forward. Cheers. May God bless all of us,” he said.

The former BOT boss also admonished members, especially the National Executive Council to remain calm in the face of the crisis rocking the party.

“I am happy to announce that Nasarawa State has appointed me to be the Chairman of the Presidential Campaign – I will lead all elders, women, and youths.

“I have started my duty in that respect and I call on all members of the Presidential Council, not to remain in Abuja, we should all go back to our units, wards, local government areas, and states, to ensure that we win our states, hands down.

“Remaining in Abuja may not augur well for us. May I also advise every one of us, EXCO, elders, youths, and others in Nasarawa State, to brace up? And may I assure Nigerians that the PDP campaign will be issue-based and all units must key into it.

“It is important that PDP remains Calm and strong; talk with one voice, and remain focused to follow the path and objectives of the Party. And to make sure all the elections are won in 2023, especially winning of the Presidential Election and encouraging, voting for Atiku Abubakar (The Waziri Adamawa) to become the President of Nigeria.

“All organs of the party must therefore create oneness and greatest positions of the party. All our elders, leaders, Youths, and all women of the party must talk with one voice and must never create any division from now on, and within the NWC.

“The NWC, which must always show a good example in all party activities; once an issue has been discussed and agreed upon, all members must abide collectively. They should never allow any person or group to use them, no matter the position of the Person.

“All Members of the party, no matter what, must accept what positions are being held and taken by the NWC, and the NWC should not come out and what they agreed; particularly by few Members of the NWC. This is not encouraging at all in our party.”

Also, the PDP Chieftain commended the Akwa-Ibom State Governor for accepting to be the Chairman of the Presidential Campaign Council as well as Alhaji Amini Tambwual, the Governor of Sokoto State, and PDP Governors’ Forum Chairman; who is the Director-General.

“I also commend the Bauchi State Governor who is also a staunch Member and Director of the Presidential Campaign. I also congratulate Chief Imoke. I congratulate all members of the campaign team, including myself who has resigned, but i took it upon myself to promote the unity of our party,” he added. ENDS…
PUNCH

Politics

Wike: Why Removing Fubara Will Be Difficult – Ex-Commissioner

Published

19 hours ago

January 9, 2026

Editor

A former Rivers State Commissioner for Information and Communication, Austin Tam-George, has said that attempts to impeach Governor Siminalayi Fubara would be difficult to sustain, citing what he described as the governor’s performance record and the lack of concrete allegations against him.

Tam-George made the remarks on Thursday while speaking on Prime Time on Arise Television, arguing that the impeachment process being initiated against Fubara was to scuttle his chance for a second term.

According to him, Governor Fubara has continued to place the needs of the people at the centre of his administration, with visible interventions in rural development, housing, education and healthcare.

He said this, in his view, has made it difficult for opponents to justify moves to remove the governor from office.

Tam-George also called on the All Progressives Congress, APC, to intervene, arguing that the party should not allow what he described as the humiliation of a sitting governor.

He said: “Well, all I think he needs to do is to do exactly what he’s been doing from the beginning, which is to place the people at the center of gravity of his administration, prioritize the needs of the people, so that the people can see the direct impact of government action in their lives.

“And that’s exactly what he’s doing in terms of rural development, in terms of housing sector transformation, which I mentioned that he is doing the same in education sector and in health.

“So if he continues, if he persists in placing the people’s need at the center of focus of his administration, there is no way they are going to be able to justify this kind of shenanigans.

“Because, if you look very carefully at the so called articles of impeachment, you will see that there is no specificity in terms of any infraction by the governor or his deputy.

“What they are trying to do is to make sure they scuttle the administration so that the governor doesn’t then get to the point where he will be seeking a second term.

“Let me be clear, just two days ago, Nyesom Wike was at one of the local governments, and he made it clear in a moment of epiphany, he made it clear that, look, if Governor Fubara were to get a second term in office, it will amount to his own political burial.

“So all of these things that we are seeing the so called impeachment proceedings they’ve initiated, it’s actually an effort to try to scuttle the prospects of the governor coming for a second term, and I don’t see how they will succeed.

“If you look at the so called articles of impeachment, as I said, they lack specificity in terms of the kind of infraction that they allege that the governor has committed. He has done nothing wrong, and they will see how the process will play out.

“My sense, and in fact, if I were to advise the governor, my sense is that he should just maintain the people, retain the people at the center of gravity of his administration, meet their needs, run a transparent administration as he always done, and then the truth will come out, and he will be able to defend the administration.

“I think the the governing APC should also step in because they can’t possibly allow the governor of the office with probably one of the best performance records in the country to be humiliated by some of these members of the assembly.”

Politics

Wike A ‘Pestilence’ On Rivers, I Resigned Because Of It – Ex-Commissioner

Published

19 hours ago

January 9, 2026

Editor

Austin Tam George, a former Rivers State Commissioner for Information and Communication, has described the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, as a destabilising force in Rivers State, accusing him of attempting to exert godfatherism over the state’s political affairs.

He argued that the move to impeach the governor is a calculated attempt to reassert political control and reduce Fubara’s growing influence.

Tam George, who served under Wike’s administration, made the remarks on Thursday while speaking on Prime Time on Arise Television.

He said he resigned as commissioner due to what he described as Wike’s propensity for chaos and instability and the reduction of governance to a personality-driven system.

According to him, the current political tension in the state is the culmination of Wike’s long-standing approach to power, which he said is now manifesting in efforts to control the state for personal political influence.

He said: “Nyesom Wike has been a complete pestilence on Rivers state. I served in his administration as commissioner for information. As you know, I resigned precisely because of these, his propensity for chaos, for instability and reducing government to a personality cult, more or less. And I’m so disappointed that this propensity has now crystallized today to a stage where the state is now held by the juggler by person who thinks that he will be political godfather over the rest of Rivers state.

“But what I think is going to happen in this final phase of this struggle is that Rivers’ people ultimately are going to resist and defeat this tendency to want to privatize the state, to want to capture the state for his own personal aggrandizement.

“Governor Fubara has been an excellent administrator. I have to say he’s spending money building people’s capacity, lifting communities out of poverty. Money you would have expected that he would have diverted to political godfathers are now being spent in critical sectors such as education, where he’s completely transforming the sector, in health where almost all the tertiary health care systems are revived, 122 primary health care centers spread across the 23 local government areas.

“There is a total transformation happening on a sector by sector basis, and this has endeared the governor to the people of the state.

“Now there is a strong likelihood that he may be seeking a second term to expand his legacy and to consolidate his achievements for the benefit of all. And this will mean that there is going to be, you know, a reduction of Wike’s influence.

“So what you see as an impeachment move is an attempt to try to reassert what they consider to be their leverage against the governor.”

Politics

Why We’re Impeaching Fubara — Rivers Assembly

Published

1 day ago

January 8, 2026

Editor

The Rivers State House of Assembly has given reasons for the ongoing impeachment proceedings against Governor Siminalayi Fubara.

The Majority Leader of the Assembly, Major Jack, said the decision to impeach the governor and his deputy was based on their alleged persistent violation of the peace agreement brokered by President Bola Tinubu.

Jack made the allegation during plenary on Thursday while presenting the report detailing acts of misconduct against the governor.

According to him, Governor Fubara and his deputy had repeatedly disregarded the resolutions reached during reconciliation efforts aimed at restoring stability in the state.

He accused the two leaders of running the affairs of government without commitment to transparency and good governance.

“The governor and his deputy have continued to act in a manner that undermines democratic principles and accountability,” Jack said.

He further alleged that the peace deals facilitated by President Tinubu were breached on several occasions, including agreements reached during reconciliation meetings held in December 2023 and another in 2025.

Jack insisted that the continued failure of the governor and his deputy to honour the terms of the peace accord necessitated the impeachment process currently before the Assembly.