PDP senator alleges fraud in selection of minority leaders

By Abdulqudus Ogundapo

The Senator representing Kebbi South, Garba Maidoki, has alleged that leaders of his party, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), were not transparent to senators of the party on the selection of the minority leaders for the 10th Senate.

Mr Maidoki made the allegation while speaking with journalists shortly after the plenary on Tuesday.

Senate President Godswill Akpabio, during Tuesday’s plenary, announced Simon Mwadkwon (PDP, Plateau North) as the minority leader and Oyewunmi Olalere (PDP, Osun West) as deputy minority leader.

He also announced Darlington Nwokeocha (LP, Abia Central) as the minority Whip and Rufai Hanga (NNPP, Kano Central) as the deputy minority whip of the senate.

Mr Akpabio explained that they were the consensus candidates of the minority parties in the upper house.

PDP sidelined senators

Mr Maidoki claimed that the PDP leaders did not involve him and many senators of the party in the selection of the minority leaders before the names were announced on the floor of the Senate.

The Kebbi Senator said he and other senators were at the PDP national secretariat on Monday over the minority leadership tussle, but none of the leaders of the party informed those in attendance of the meeting that consensus candidates had been selected.

He said the resolution at the end of the meeting was that the PDP should write to the Senate that it had yet to decide its consensus candidates for the minority leaders of the Senate.

The senator said he was not among those who decided the consensus leadership of the minority parties despite being a member of one of the parties in the Senate.

“I never knew they were signing; nobody called me, nobody informed me even (by) an SMS. We have a minority caucus where we have been meeting regularly; the issue was never brought up.

“We were at the PDP secretariat yesterday and for them to tell us what are we going to do, and we were told that nothing had been finalised. We asked the PDP secretariat if nothing has been finalised, please write a letter to the Senate telling them that we have not agreed on the leadership of the minority caucus.

“Unfortunately, those who were there refused to write this letter either because they are aware or they are culpable. We don’t have a problem; two wrongs don’t make it right.

“We have 36 out of the 50 senators that are in the minority caucus, and then we cannot even come together and agree who should lead us. I have nothing against those who emerged if 36 senators out of 50 have signed as it is said, and I believe they did,” he said.

Mr Maidoki, however, said despite the anomalies in the selection process, he is ready to work with the leadership of the minority parties.

“Leadership has emerged; we are willing to work with them to make sure that the Senate succeeds. We are not afraid of anybody, and we want to be plain and clear.

“Nigeria is a project that must work, transparency in everything in government. I am not against it now that they have emerged. We are willing to join forces because there is no time to fight now,” he said.