The National Working Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party will on Monday, hold a meeting with its members in the Red Chamber in Abuja.
Reports revealed that the planned meeting is unconnected with the current tension, surrounding the appointment of principal officers within the Senate minority caucus of the house.
Premium Politics had earlier reported that a PDP group sent a note of warning to the President of the Senate, Senator Godwills Akpabio, warning him to stay away from the minority leadership issue of the house.
However, the proposed meeting is organised ahead of the National Assembly’s resumption of plenary on July 4, to counter alleged efforts by the Senate leadership, allegedly dominated by the All Progressives Congress, to penetrate the Minority Caucus and impose a pliable leadership upon it.
In their warning to the Senate leadership and the ruling APC, the PDP group had promised to resist any attempt by the ruling party to impose their candidates on the minority group in the house.
Some reliable sources within the PDP National Secretariat in Abuja revealed that the NWC has been having discussions with both PDP and other minority party senators, to establish a resilient Minority Leadership that aligns with the expectations of the Nigerian people.
A reliable source said, “The upcoming meeting will provide an opportunity for senators to address internal disputes and establish a fair distribution of positions while considering the interests of other minority parties.
“Our NWC has been diligently working behind the scenes to ensure a strong Minority leadership in both chambers of the National Assembly.
“We have been engaged in talks with our senators and members of the House of Representatives.
“The purpose of Monday’s meeting is to iron out any remaining issues and resolve disagreements so that our party and lawmakers can present a unified front on the matter of Minority Leadership in the National Assembly,” he stated.
Another source who also preferred not to be mentioned, accused the Senate leadership of a desperate attempt to fracture the minority caucus, aiming to undermine the opposition within the house.
“As you may know, according to the Senate’s Rules, the responsibility of choosing the Minority leadership lies exclusively with senators from the Minority Parties. The Rules do not grant any role to the APC-led leadership in the selection of the Minority Leadership,” the source explained.
“The Senate President’s role, as outlined by the Rules, is simply to announce the name forwarded to him by the Minority Caucus. He has no authority to announce any other list apart from the one provided by the Minority Caucus. We believe that the Senate President, the distinguished Senator Godswill Akpabio, will adhere to the Rules. He is an experienced politician, and we expect him to be guided accordingly.
Any deviation from adhering to the Rules will be met with strong resistance from us,” the source stated.
