President Goodluck Jonathan Thursday formally announced the resignation of Bamanga Tukur as national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting.
The NEC meeting is still in progress at the Wadata House headquarters of the ruling party. With this development, the Deputy National Chairman, Uche Secondus, takes over as acting chairman.
President Jonathan handed Tukur’s letter to the party Secretary and thereafter suggested that another NEC meeting should hold on Monday to determine a new chairman from Tukur’s zone, north east.
Jonathan told the NEC “We have some internal problems that have been agitating the mind of the people….For us to make sure that we rest these issues, the party Chairman agreed to step aside. “He’s not guilty in anyway. In fact, I have to give him (a new) assignment that is tougher than handling PDP because we need people like Bamanga Tukur to market this country and market the PDP……
“From today, people will begin to see PDP getting stronger and stronger. Before the end of March people will just relax and say it’s over.
“Members of this party are still faithful to the party. Of course we have few defections which to me it’s normal.
“I don’t think it’s something we should worry ourselves too much because as long as we continue to work together, as long as we do things the way we should do, I believe and I’m convinced that PDP will continue to be the Number 1 party in this country”.
Mr. Tukur has been severally criticized by party chieftains for high-handedness and for running a ‘one-man show’.
It will be recalled that seven aggrieved governors then tagged as ‘G7’ specifically demanded that Mr. Tukur should resign or be removed if the crisis rocking the party would be resolved.
However, five of the governors- Rotimi Amaechi (Rivers), Muritala Nyako (Adamawa), Ahmed Abdulfatah (Kwara), Aliyu Wammako (Sokoto) and Rabiu Kwakwanso (Kano) later defected to the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) when it was glaring that the Presidency was not ready to let him go.
Bamanga Tukur, a former governor of old Gongola state and Minister of Industry, was elected national chairman in March, 2012.
