Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has failed to resolve the crisis rocking its caucus in the House of Representatives, one year after it broke out.
Daily Sun learnt that the failure to resolve the crisis has led to sharp division in the opposition caucus in the House with lawmakers torn between supporting minority leader, Ndudi Elumelu, or former chairman, House Committee on Public Petitions, Kingsley Chinda.
It was also learnt that the opposition caucus has remained unsettled following the continued suspension slammed on Elumelu, Toby Okechukwu, Gideon Gwani, Segun Adekoya, Wole Oke, Lynda Ikpeazu and Anayo Edwin by the PDP National Working Committee (NWC) on July 5, 2019 for their alleged role in the minority caucus crisis.
It was gathered that efforts by PDP Governors Forum headed by Aminu Tambuwal to resolve the issue has not seen much progress owing to the lockdown occasioned by the COVID -19 pandemic.
Former Minister of Transport, Ebenezer Babatope, in a telephone interview with Daily Sun, yesterday, faulted the continued suspension of Elumelu and the six lawmakers and appealed to the party leadership to recall them.
Babatope said the lawmakers did not commit any criminal or heinous offence to warrant their suspension for one year.
Director General, PDP Governors Forum, CID Maduabum, said governors being stakeholders in the party were “definitely interested in having peace in our caucus in the National Assembly. You know we have been on lockdown, not much has been happening.”
Trouble started in the PDP caucus on July 2, 2019 when Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila named Elumelu, Okechukwu, Gwani and Adekoya as minority leader, deputy minority leader, minority whip and deputy minority whip respectively.
The opposition party instead had in a letter to Gbajabiamila named Chinda, Chukwuka Onyema, Yakubu Barde, Muriano Ajibola as its choices for the positions of minority leader, deputy minority leader, minority whip and deputy minority whip, respectively.