Skip to main content

Ribadu Goes Into Hiding As PDP Moves To Appoint Him Party Chairman

As the opposition Peoples Democratic Party gets set to name a new leader of the party, governors and other chieftains of the PDP are on a manhunt for a former chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Nuhu Ribadu, in their bid to make him chairman.

PREMIUM TIMES gathered that a meeting of the national caucus of the PDP is currently holding in Abuja, after which the National Executive Committee would meet at the Wadata Plaza secretariat of the party by 2p.m. on Tuesday.

Mr. Ribadu was tipped for the chairmanship position last year, shortly after the then chairman, Ahmadu Muazu, resigned from office.

However, we gathered that the move, championed by governors elected under the party, was thwarted by the National Working Committee, NWC, under the interim leadership of Uche Secondus.

We also gathered that Mr. Ribadu who had earlier agreed to take the offer also abandoned it on account of "lack of seriousness to truly reform the party by its top echelon".

However, after a long back and forth and controversy, including court cases, the party agreed to hold a special NEC meeting to fill the position created by the resignation of Mr. Muazu.

PREMIUM TIMES learnt of spirited attempts over the last few days by some top party chieftains to persuade Mr. Ribadu to accept to chair and transform the party.

A source privy to the goings on in the PDP said some of the party's governors visited Mr. Ribadu in a last minute effort to get him to change his position. He was however, said to have stuck to his guns.

"Since midnight yesterday, party chieftains led by a governor from the South-south region began a search for Ribadu, to no avail.

"The ex-EFCC chair was said to have gone incommunicado since last night, making all attempts to reach him impossible," the source said.

He also said at least four governors of the party and other chieftains are currently waiting at the Bayelsa governors lodge in Maitama area of Abuja, scrambling to reach Mr Ribadu.

"Mr. Ribadu, PREMIUM TIMES learnt, is skeptical of taking the PDP job because of the battered image the party has suffered, especially with current corruption probes.

"He is also not confident that the party's bigwigs would tolerate his radical disposition," our source said.

PREMIUM TIMES reporters have been unsuccessful in reaching Mr. Ribadu for hours. His telephones are switched off the several times our reporters called.

At his residence in the Asokoro District of Abuja, security guards denied our reporters entry, saying the former EFCC chairman was not home, and that his whereabouts is unknown.

When contacted, his spokesperson, Abdulaziz Abdulaziz, said he had not been able to reach Mr. Ribadu in the past two days.

 
Sent from my BlackBerry wireless device from MTN

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

UNILORIN PRODUCES 89 FIRST CLASS GRADUATES

Prof. AbduGaniyu Ambali, the Vice-Chancellor, University of Ilorin, said on Friday that the institution had produced a total of 89 first class graduates for the 2016/2017 academic session.  The Vice-Chancellor made this disclosure in Ilorin on the occasion of a handover and valedictory press conference,  which signaled the commencement of the 33rd convocation ceremonies of the university. In his address entitled: “You are great”, the VC said that the university was thriving academically, going by the quality and quantity of research works embarked upon by lecturers. He gave a breakdown of the graduating students thus: 89 First Class Division, 1,932 Second Class Upper Division and 3,727 Second Class Lower Division. The VC also said that 1,309 of them graduated with Third Class Division, 117 with ordinary pass while there were two aegrotat graduating students. While handing over to Pro...

10 ISSUES RAISED BY SEN. BUKOLA SARAKI DURING WORLD PRESS CONFERENCE

Results update from Ondo State polling units

Results have begun to trickle in from the various wards where voting have ended in the Governorship election in Ondo state.      The RESULT from Akure South ward 3, polling unit 024A— (1) Elegiri/Ifedore LGA PDP- 37 APC-23 AD- 6 ADC- 2 PPA- 1 (2)FUTA GATE, AKINDEKO HALL. . ACCORD-2 AD-15 APC-35 PDP-20 SDP-2 (3) Ward 9 unit 22, Akure south APC 46 Pdp 43 Ad 16 (4) Fagun Ondo Ward 11,Unit 1. Ad: 26 APC: 30 PDP: 104 (5)Akungba LGA Ward 10, Pu 14 Apc 192. PDP 115, AD 76 SDP 41 (6)Unit 15b, Ward 7, ONDO WEST. APC-29, AD-16 PDP-47 (7)LAGBOJA UNIT 010 ODE AYE WARD2 APC 77, AD 68, PDP 91 (8)Ward 6 unit 1, Akure South, Ilekun Oda Road. AD 44, PDP 50, APC 53. (9)Unit 3, Ward 11, ONDO WEST (LA 2): PDP 86, APC 44, AD 26 (11)Igboroko II, Ward 3, Unit 11 APC: 113 PDP: 9 AD: 3 SDP: NCP: 1 PPA: 1 LP: 1 (12) Results in… Unit 17 Igboroko (Ahmadiya grammar school) 2 ward 3 Owo LG. AD…. 01 PDP…..05 APC….. 262. (13)Unit 15, Ward 7, ONDO WEST (St. Paul).. APC-32, AD-19, PDP-59 (14)Unit 15a, War...