Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
All are eyes on the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as the House of Representatives resume plenary tomorrow. The PDP as the party with the largest number of seats in the House, after the All Progressives Congress (APC), is expected to provide a vibrant opposition in the Green chamber.
The House minority caucus consists of 147 members drawn from nine political parties, with 127 of them from the PDP. The other 20 seats are shared among All Progressives Grand Alliance ( APGA), the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), Action Alliance (AA), Allied Peoples Movement (APM) and Social Democratic Party( SDP).
The House had suspended plenary for two weeks to enable heads of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) appear before the relevant House committees for the defence of their 2020 budget proposals. And following the conclusion of the budget defence, the Green chamber is expected to commence full legislative activities this weeek.
Analysts say with the dominance of the House by the ruling APC, stakeholders are looking toward the opposition to effectively checkmate the majority party in the parliament.
Therefore, the onerous task of providing a direction for the opposition and by implication speaking up for the citizens on government programmes and policies lies squarely with the PDP.
Pundits say the onus lies on the opposition in the parliament, especially in the Green chamber, which is considered more representative of the various sections of the country , to effectively interrogate those policies, so as to better protect the interest of the masses.
The Minority Leader, Honourable Ndudi Elumelu, in a statement, yesterday, said the opposition “recognises the fact that Nigerians look up to them to protect their interest on critical issues that directly affect their lives, particularly on budget planning and implementation in key sectors and would not disappoint the people.”
Elumelusaid the minority caucus is poised to fully monitor the implementation of special intervention funds for the unemployed as well as the welfare of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the North East and other parts of the country, to ensure that funds appropriated for them are not diverted.
Besides, the minority leader added that “the opposition will take critical look at all revenue projections from Value Added Tax (VAT) and other tax regimes so as to ensure equity and fairness as well as to guarantee that the masses are not overburdened in the process.”
The Deputy Minority Leader, Toby Okechukwu, told Daily Sun that opposition in the House of Representatives will strive to effectively keep the ruling party in check.
He said: “ Our legislature is for the benefit of Nigerians. And as opposition, we will do our job to make sure that this government tends properly. And if they don’t, we hold them in checks. It is our responsibility. That is what we are elected to do.”
Regardless, analysts say in as much as the House minority caucus has been trying its best in keeping the APC on its toes, as was witnessed during the debate on the general principles of the 2020 Appropriation Bill, when opposition lawmakers took the government to task over the budget, there is need for a synergy between the minority leadership and the PDP, as well as other opposition parties.
Ironically, the PDP leadership has been cold towards the minority leadership since their emergence, a development analysts say is not healthy for opposition politics in the National Assembly.
The PDP National Working Committee (NWC) had on July 5 slammed a one month suspension on the minority leader, Ndudi Elumelu, deputy minority leader, Toby Okechukwu, minority whip, Gideon Gwani and deputy minority whip, Gideon Adekoya following their emergence as leaders of the minority caucus against the wish of the party.
Also suspended in connection to the emergence of the House minority caucus leadership are Honourable Wole Oke, Lynda Ikpeazu and Anayo Edwin.
All the seven members were referred to the PDP National Disciplinary Committee headed by Tom Ikimi for further disciplinary actions. Although the one month suspension has since elapsed, the party is yet to recall them.
The opposition party under the leadership of the National Chairman, Uche Secondus, had in a letter to the speaker, Femi Gbajabiamila named Honourable Kingsley Chinda, Honourable Chukwuka Onyema, Honourable Yakubu Barde and Honourable Ajibola Muraina as its choices for the positions of minority leader, deputy minority leader, minority whip and deputy minority whip respectively.
However, in clear disobedience to their party, 111 out of the 147 opposition lawmakers reportedly met and nominated Elumelu, Okechukwu, Gwani and Adekoya as their choices for minority leader, deputy minority leader, minority whip and deputy minority whip respectively.
Following what appeared as utter disloyalty to the PDP, all hell was let loose on the floor of the House on July 3 as the Speaker, Femi Gbajabiamila, announced Elumelu and the three others as leaders of the minority caucus and jettisoning the list from the PDP national leadership. Gbajabiamila said his action is based on Order 7, Rule 8 of the House standing rules.
Order 7, Rule 8(1) of the House standing rules states that: “members of the minority parties in the House shall nominate from among them the minority leader, minority whip, deputy minority leader and deputy minority whip. “
Expectedly, both the PDP and Chinda kicked. They accused the majority party of “imposing” a leadership on the minority caucus, stating that they will not allow it.
“ It is unfortunate as this is very unparliamentary. We are not going to take it. We must do things properly. We are members of the minority party. Our leadership will not be determined by the majority party,” Chinda, who represents Obi Akpor Federal Constituency of Rivers State had stated.
On the other hand, Elumelu, who represents Anaocha Federal Constituency, in the aftermath of his emergence as minority leader, said in as much as he accepted his nomination as leader of opposition in the Green chamber, himself and the other minority principal officers remained loyal to the PDP.
“We are all from nine political parties. For us who are from PDP, we are very loyal to PDP. We believe in PDP. And of course, we have no other party than PDP and we have followed what has happened and have accepted our nomination based on Order 7, Rule 8. We have complied with the position of the rule of the House,” Elumelu had told journalists in Abuja.
In the aftermath of the dust raised by the emergence of the minority leadership, the PDP Board of Trustees (BoT) set up a committee headed by former President of the Senate, Iyorchia Ayu, to mediate in the crisis. The committee has since submitted its report to the BoT. Inside sources of the Ayu committee advised the opposition party leadership to embrace the Elumelu-led minority caucus.
However, the PDP leadership, which insists that the suspension of Elumelu and six others subsists, has maintained sealed lips over the Ayu committee report, amidst rising tension in the opposition party over the matter.
Nevertheless, the minority leadership has continued to discharge its functions, with opposition lawmakers insisting that there is no going back on their selection, as there was nothing unusual about their emergence in the first instance.
Surprisingly, even Chinda, in the last few days, has been signing his press statements as “leader” of the PDP caucus and not as minority leader. A PDP member of the House, Honourable Livinus Makwe in a recent interview told Daily Sun that the action of the PDP against Elumelu and six others over the minority leadership issue is unnecessary.
Makwe, who represents Ohaozara /Onicha /Ivo Federal Constituency of Ebonyi State noted that there have been instances in the past when lawmakers disagreed with their political parties on the choice of their leaders and nobody was punished for it.
He said: “If you remember, these things have been happening in the past and it has never gone to this level. APC will say these are the people we want in the eight assembly( as presiding officers). They (lawmakers) voted completely another set of people.
“Even at a time, PDP will also say these are the people they want and they will also vote another set of people. But this is the first time that this kind of action is being taken and I don’t think it is really necessary.
“I think what they should have done is if they felt that what their members did is not good, they should have called them and cautioned them. And from what we learnt, they have always sat as a caucus and elected the names that they give to the party, which the party will now write to the National Assembly and not the other way round.”
He added that: “what caused this problem is that the party kept a distance from the people representing them in the National Assembly. About 111 members our of 140 endorsed a certain a position. And followed the rules of the House of Representatives. At least ninety per cent are PDP members. “
In the seventh assembly, the lawmakers had voted incumbent governor of Sokoto State, Aminu Tambuwal as Speaker of the House against Mulikat Akande, who was PDP’s preferred candidate for the speakership position.
Also, in the eight assembly, the lawmakers rejected Gbajabiamila, who was endorsed by the APC for the speakership seat and voted his predecessor, Yakubu Dogara instead.
Pundits say by refusing to accept the minority caucus leadership, especially as it is obvious that nothing can change their emergence, the PDP one way or the other is not helping the cause of the opposition, which ordinarily, it should be championing.
A member of the opposition caucus, Chukwuma Umeoji told Daily Sun that by giving the minority leadership a cold shoulder, the PDP is not helping the opposition in the country and Nigerians in general.
Umeoji, who represents Aguata Federal Constituency on the platform of APGA noted that the major opposition party needs to be on the same page with the minority leadership.
The lawmaker warned that: “if they (PDP leadership) continue the way they are going, that bite from the opposition will not come. Because for you to achieve anything, immediately you know that minority lawmakers are supporting these people as leaders, what you should do is to accept them and bring them closer. “And you now position them for the party’s programme for them to play the role of opposition. They (PDP leadership) better wake up or in few weeks to come, a terrible thing may happen. What if a dangerous bill comes now that is against the common people. What they are doing is dangerous. We need the opposition for this democracy to survive.”