MU’AZU STORMS CALABAR

The National Chairman of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Adamu Mu’azu, is expected in Calabar, the Cross River State Capital, on Tuesday, August 5, 2014, for a meeting with critical party members and leaders in the South-South geo-political zone.

The meeting is part of the consultation visit of the party Chairman to all PDP leaders across the nation.

According to sources at the party Headquarters, the meeting, aside from creating the first official platform for interaction between the Chairman and the leaders in the zone, is also expected to discuss issues pertaining to the 2015 elections.

“The zone is the President’s zone and we all know Mr. President has a right to seek election for a second term. Charity must therefore begin at home. If his people are not united in the bid, it will be hard to convince other Nigerians to support it. So, it may certainly be one of the discussions at the meeting,” a top party official told The Ibom Telegraph.

Another source said it will generally be a parley for the President’s bid for a second term, saying “did you see the list of invitees to the meeting. Those are the statutory delegates at the primaries of the party.”

Party leaders in the zone are in an upbeat mood. One of them, a party official from Akwa Ibom State who prefers anonymity had long been exposed.

According to him, “the meeting was supposed to be held in Uyo. We don’t know what happened but we are happy all the same. Party politics must be a round-the-year matter when things do not happen, the leadership is to blame. But we thank the game changer (referring to Alhaji Mu’azu) for initiating this tour. At least, he has come down to our level to tell us where we should go in 2015.”

Calabar, the host town, is also in an upbeat mood as hotels are wearing new looks in expectation of the visitors.

A call to one of the hotels in Calabar showed that they were fully booked and hookers were seen working around the vicinity of the Cultural Centre, Calabar, when our reporter visited there.

Those expected included all members of the PDP National Working Committee; all PDP Governors from the South-South and their deputies; Governors of Bauchi and Gombe states; all National Executive Committee members, Board of Trustees and Zonal Executive Committee members from the South-South; all National Assembly members from the South-South, PDP Speakers and Principal Officers of the State Houses of Assembly in the South-South,

Others included all Honourable Ministers, Presidential Advisers and Assistants from the South-South; all PDP State Chairmen with Deputy Chairmen, Secretaries, State Organizing Secretaries, Woman Leaders and Youth Leaders from the South-South; five Elder Statesmen and Women Leaders from each State of the South-South nominated by the State Party leadership, and all PDP Local Government Chairmen in the South-South.