NASS leadership: PDP vows to punish rebellious members

 Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja

In the aftermath of the inauguration of the Ninth Assembly, the People’s Democratic Party ( PDP) has vowed to take action over the roles played by its members in the elections of the presiding officers of the Senate and House of Representatives.

PDP National Secretary, Umaru Tsauri stated this, yesterday,  in Abuja, at the inauguration of a committee to probe the role of lawmakers elected on its platform; in the election of the Senate President, Speaker of the House of Representatives and their respective deputies.

The 10- man committee, which is headed by the secretary of the  PDP Board of Trustees and former Senate President, Adolphus Wabara, has three weeks to complete its assignment.

The committee is expected to expose PDP members in the National Assembly who failed to abide by the decision of the party, during the election of presiding officers and recommend how to forestall future occurances among others.

Tsuari had, in a statement  prior to the inauguration of the Ninth Assembly last month,  announced the adoption of Ali Ndume and Umaru Bago as the opposition party’s choice for the position of senate president and speaker of the House of Representatives, respectively.

Consequently,the  PDP directed senators-elect  and House of Representatives members-elect elected on the platform of the  to vote enmass for the duo.  However, at the end of the election of the presiding officers, opposition lawmakers voted against preferred candidates of their party, as votes scored by Ndume and Bago  were far below the number of PDP lawmakers in both chambers of the National Assembly.

Amidst calls for sanctions for PDP lawmakers who voted against the party’s preferred candidates, the opposition party’s National Executive Committee resolved to set up a panel to investigate what transpired in the election of presiding officers of the National Assembly.

The PDP scribe expressed confidence that the committee will do a thorough job. “We have to take a decision whether right or wrong. We are not going back on our decision. It is either you are in PDP or you are  not. No sitting on the fence.”

Speaking earlier, Deputy National Chairman, Yomi Akinwumi, who presented the National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus, said the party decided to investigate what happened during the election of presiding officers of the National Assembly because it believes in internal democracy.