How Jonathan secured PDP governors’ support

President Goodluck Jonathan

President Goodluck Jonathan secured the approval of the governors elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party before suspending the Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, Mallam Sanusi Lamido, from office, SATURDAY PUNCH has learnt.

The secret meeting,which was held inside the First Lady Conference Hall at the Presidential Villa on Monday, was attended by the PDP governors.

The governors, who attended the meeting included  Sule Lamido (Jigawa); Liyel Imoke (Cross River); Ibrahim Shema (Katsina); Martins Elechi (Ebonyi); Theodore Orji (Abia); Ramalan Yero (Kaduna) and Gabriel Suswam (Benue).

Others are Seidu Dakingari (Kebbi); Idris Wada (Kogi); Babangida Aliyu (Niger); Jonah Jang (Plateau); Isa Yuguda (Bauchi); Garba Umar (Taraba); Emmanuel Uduaghan (Delta); Bala Ngilari (Deputy Governor, Adamawa) and Sam Jonah (Deputy Governor Bayelsa).

Vice-President Namadi Sambo; National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Alhaji Adamu Mu’azu; the party’s Deputy National Chairman, Uche Secondus and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim, also attended alongside the President.

One of the governors who attended the meeting said that the President actually tabled the issue and was advised to act fast because the leadership of the party and the Presidency were of the opinion that the suspended CBN governor was becoming a major opposition figure as the race for 2015 approached.

The source said, “The President tabled the matter and the governors and the leadership of the party agreed that the matter needed to be dealt with early.

“While some argued that the matter should be left till a later date to enable the suspended CBN governor to serve out his tenure, which ought to end around middle of the year, others felt that it would be better for him to be suspended in order not to cause further damage to the fortune of the President and the party as the race for 2015 hit up.

“We were of the opinion that the CBN governor was becoming a major opposition figure in the country and that the earlier the man was dealt with, the better for us.

“Though we didn’t expect that he would be suspended this week, we knew that he was not a lover of the party and the reelection bid of the President.”

The source said that it was clear that the suspected CBN governor was going to damage the electoral fortune of the President and the party with the way he was going with his campaign on the non-remittance of some funds from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation into the Federation Account.

“With his position, we expected him to be part of the government, but with his  utterances, it was clear that Sanusi was becoming a major opposition to the party and the President,” the governor said.

Meanwhile, members of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum have called for an emergency meeting to discuss the suspension of Sanusi by President Goodluck Jonathan.

The meeting, which will hold at the Rivers State Governor’s Lodge in Abuja, was summoned by the Chairman of the NGF, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi.

Amaechi, who is also the governor of Rivers State, said in a notice of meeting  sent to all the governors and signed by the Director General of the Forum. Mr. Asishana Okauru, that the meeting which would be the 3rd in 2014, would also discuss other issues.