In the past two weeks there have been speculations that the former governor of Borno State, Ali Modu Sheriff and his teeming supporters are getting ready to dump the All Progressives Congress, APC, for the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP. Political observers have been expecting this development since the APC held its inaugural national convention where supporters of Sheriff, who is one of the founding fathers of the party, lost out.
The former governor has been having a running battle with the incumbent Borno State governor, Alhaji Kashim Shettima, over control of the structure of APC in the state.
The APC national leaders were reported to have backed Governor Shettima because he is the “leader” of the party in the state.
In April Governor Shettima declared that he had resolved all differences with his predecessor and benefactor. Shettima disclosed this shortly after an APC stakeholders meeting they attended in Maiduguri, the Borno capital.
He said, “I want to announce that we have resolved to bury our differences as a family, the interest of our great party, the APC and the people. The APC is a big family and quarrels or disagreements are inevitable in any human endeavour. I want to assure you that we have decided to bury our hatchet and come together as a team from now on. By the grace of God, this is the last time you will hear of any inter party squabbles among members of APC in Borno.”
But from every indication the truce, if any, between the governor and Modu Sheriff has completely broken down. Sheriff’s supporters are already dumping APC in droves for PDP, a development that is already causing disquiet in Borno State chapter of PDP because of the intimidating clout and political influence of the former governor. Three House of Representatives members from Borno State yesterday dumped their All Progressives Congress, APC platform for the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP. Three members of the House of Representatives and strong allies of Sheriff have already defected to the PDP.
The lawmakers are Hon Isa Lawan of Kukawa/Mobbar/Abadam/Guzam federal constituency; Hon Peter Biye Gumtha of Damboa/Gwoza/Chibok constituency as well as Hon Abdurrahman Abba Terab, who is representing Bama/Ngala/Kalabalge federal constituency of Borno State.
The likely defection of Sheriff to PDP has already caused a big crack in Borno PDP as some members of the party are kicking against staying under the same umbrella with their old political rival. The fear of the old PDP members stem from the fact that Sheriff, a three term Senator who also served as governor from 2003 to 2011, may likely overshadow them and take over control of the party from them.
However, secretary of the PDP Youth Forum in Borno State, Umar Sanda said they are tired of playing what he called “second fiddle” in national politics, as PDP has never won the governorship election in the state since 1999. “We are aware that most of the chieftains of PDP in Borno State are not happy that Sheriff is joining us but that is their personal opinion. As far as youth are concerned, he is warmly welcome,” he said.
At the national level political watchers are already raising eye brows over the planned defection of Modu Sheriff to PDP. This is not unconnected to the position of PDP on the controversial labeling of leaders of APC as sympathizers of terrorists and insurgents in the country and that the party’s manifesto is tilted towards Janjaweed ideology.
In a statement issued by its national publicity secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, on March 9, the PDP said that the ideology of APC was “completely anarchist” as were those of the Janjaweed, and the Anti-Balaka and the Seleka of the Central African Republic.
Metuh claimed APC may be benefiting from the mayhem and knows more than meet the eyes about the spate of terror attacks in the country.
“When last year in its first official outing, the leaders of the APC said terrorism in Nigeria would disappear within 100 days of APC leadership, Nigerians did ask if they knew the characters in crime and their sponsors. APC gave silence as an answer while Nigerians kept wondering. Today, the party has released its manifesto with loud silence on the matter so that Nigerians would not raise further questions on the face behind the terrorism mask,” Metuh said.
In spite of APC leaders’ denial that the party is not in support of insurgents, the Peoples Democratic Party has insisted that the actions, utterances, and body language of the All Progressives Congress have continued to give it away as the face behind the insurgency in parts of the country.
The PDP dismissed the APC denial of the charge that it was not behind the violence in the country as an afterthought.
A statement by the National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Chief Olisa Metuh, said the party needed no further proof on the alliance between the APC and the insurgents.
“ When we accused the APC of being behind insurgency, we did not speak in vain and when we summarised the manifesto of the party as a product of Janjaweed ideology, we have verifiable reasons,” he said.
It is very possible that PDP labeled APC leaders sympathizers of insurgents because of the utterances of APC leaders and the fact that some of them, including Modu Sheriff, have been mentioned in security reports on the activities of insurgents in the country.
For instance, in September 2011 a final report submitted by the Presidential Advisory Committee on the Security Challenges in the North-East under one Ambassador from Bornu State, Gaji Galtimaru to President Goodluck Jonathan linked a violent youth political thuggery group called ‘ECOMOG’ with Boko Haram activities in Borno.
The report said Modu Sheriff created ‘ECOMOG’ when he was Governor from 2003 to 2011. Sheriff has long denied that his ‘ECOMOG’ boys had anything to do with Boko Haram.
Also, on November 22, 2011, a 10-man delegation of the PDP in Borno State led by the state chairman, Alhaji Baba I Basharu said in Abuja during a visit to Media Trust’s corporate head office declared that the former governor created Boko Haram in the build up to 2003 elections.
The next day Daily Trust newspapers hit the news stand with a screaming banner headline captioned “How Boko Haram began by Borno PDP”. Again, Modu Sheriff reacted saying that he did not create Boko Haram.
About two years ago when a Boko Harm member was arrested in Maiduguri at the residence of Senator Zana the Senator told Nigerians that the house where the Boko Haram member was arrested belonged to Modu Sheriff but the former governor denied it.
Only recently the Minister of Information, Labaran Maku alleged that Boko Haram was a creation of Borno State Government during the regime of Modu Sheriff.
Former minister of Aviation, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, who recently defected from the APC to the PDP, said one of the reasons he dumped the party was because it was infested by people that have soft spot for insurgents in the country. The APC threatened to sue Fani-Kayode over the comment but the party has tactically withdrawn after Fani-Kayode threatened to spill more beans and go specific.
Disturbed by the political and moral implications of admitting Modu Sheriff into the PDP a group known as Bayelsans Advocacy and Defence Round-Table pleaded with the PDP National Chairman, Adamu Mu’azu to weigh the options and the import of giving the party’s membership card to the former governor irrespective of his political influence in Borno state.
In a statement made available to journalists in Abuja, the group said Senator Sheriff is already stigmatised with an insurgent group and his membership of PDP will have negative impact on public perception of the party.
The statement, which was signed by the group defense leader, Mr. Inemo Ebiere and Defense Asst. Secretary, Smith Tamarauemi, said PDP must reject the overtures of Senator Sheriff to join the party in order to stave off backlash from Nigerians during 2015 general election.
“We are dreadfully worried by the things we have been reading in the Nigerian newspapers in the last one year that was like a joke but now looking serious, which are media reports that Malam Adamu Mua’zu, the National Chairman of our great umbrella, the undefeatable PDP and other party leaders, are planning to bring into our fold, the controversial former Governor of Bornu State, Senator Modu Ali Sheriff aka SAS into the PDP.
“If this move is true, we consider this endeavor not only the biggest joke in the life of the PDP but also the most unintelligent political step to take in an election year that will be dominated by debates concerning Boko Haram i.e who caused it, who is sponsoring it, who is supporting it, who is or are conspirators on it and whether or not the federal government is doing enough to address it (which we know it is doing).
The statement by the Bayelsans Advocacy and Defence Round-Table further said “We are worried that if Muazu brings in Modu Sheriff to the PDP today as we approach the elections, those malevolent Nigerians who support the baseless theory of Governor Murtala Nyako of Adamawa State, that the Federal Government led by President Jonathan is behind Boko Haram killings in the northeast by way of genocide against the north, can begin to come up with some wicked political arithmetic that will begin to associate President Jonathan with Modu Sheriff and the Boko Haram killings in the north regardless of whether the theory is a lie.
“The implication of this is that President Jonathan and the PDP will attract unthinkable suspicion that will cast serious doubt on the innocence of the President and our party, the PDP. We may end up losing not just grip of the north central and minority groups in core north that we appear to political hold but also we can lose analytical minds in the south-west and south-east including masses in the regions that currently support the President and the PDP.”
We cannot afford the slightest mistake in the 2015 elections. As it is now, with what happened in Ekiti State and the assembly bye-election in Kaduna last weekend, it is clear that the APC is only strong in propaganda on the Newspapers and Television. We should not allow the APC pounce its propaganda machinery on us when Modu Sheriff that they are trying to push away as a baggage, finally becomes our own burden to deal with.”
The national leadership of the PDP has not responded to the statement by Bayelsans Advocacy and Defence Round-Table and other Nigerians that have expressed reservations over the impending defection of Sheriff to the PDP. It is most likely that PDP leaders will not place any obstacle on the path of the former governor to join the ruling party as he has never been convicted by any court of competent jurisdiction of sponsorship of any insurgent group in the country. PDP’s hunger to make in-road into Borno and Yobe states which has been under the control of opposition parties may be the deciding factor in the unfolding drama.
However, PDP must be ready for the barrage of criticism that will be hauled at it as soon as it presents its membership card to Modu Sheriff. APC will also likely make an issue of the admittance of the former governor into PDP, accuse the party of double standard, desperation, and raise moral issues.
As the former Borno state governor’s supporters continue to defect to PDP the question on the lips of everyone is “can PDP take a chance with Modu Sheriff?” Time will tell.