Nigeria Governor Forum Which way forward?

Like a broken family whose members would want its inheritance destroyed rather than shared the cracks in the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) over the recent election of its chairman has deepened, perhaps, irretrievably, as the battle of who the authentic chairman is has shifted to the law courts.

The outcome of the chairmanship election, which was held at the Rivers State Governor’s Lodge, Abuja, on May 25, reportedly won by incumbent chairman of the forum and Governor of Rivers State, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, who polled 19 votes against 16 votes scored by fellow contestant and Plateau State, Governor ,Jonah Jang. Amaechi was declared the winner of the election by the Director-General of NGF, Mr.Ashishana Okauru.

However, the once strong and influential forum has since been split into two factions, following the rejection of Governor Amaechi’s re-election by supporters of Governor Jang, alleging profound irregularities in the election. Instead, they pronounced Jang as the actual winner of the disputed election. But Amaechi insists he won “fair and square.”

In the aftermath of the election, the forum has witnessed a series of twists and turns. Governor Amaechi has been suspended from the ruling Peoples Democractic Party (PDP) by the National Working Committee (NWC) on grounds of disobedience to the State chapter of the party in Rivers State.

A committee of the party headed by a prominent lawyer, Joseph Gadzama (SAN) was set last week to investigate the alleged infractions by Amaechi, who, in turn, has alleged a “political witch-hunt” by the party. The latest twist in the tail in the crisis rocking the party is the court action instituted last friday by the Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Fashola, on behalf of pro-Amaechi governors.The action is to stop Governor Jang from “parading himself” as the chairman of the NGF, even as some pro-Jang governors took time over the weekend to brief the media in Abuja and Lagos to shed more light on the lingering crisis.

Obviously, the court action filed before a Federal High Court in Abuja, has opened a new chapter, arguably, an interesting dimension to the crisis. In the writ of summons filed by a former Attorney-General of Lagos State, Prof.Yemi Osibajo (SAN) and human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), Fashola is asking the court to declare that Jang is not competent to be called the elected chairman of the NGF. He claims that a record number of 35 State Governors participated in the controversial election of May 24,that returned Amaechi as the NGF chairman. As a result,the plaintiff (Fashola) is praying the court to stop Jang from parading himself as “the elected chairman of the forum in any manner whatsoever and however.” Other defendants joined in the suit for which no date has been fixed for hearing,are the D-G of the NGF, Mr.Okauru and the Registered Trustees of the NGF vested with the power to administer and manage the trusts of the NGF. Besides, Fashola is seeking the court’s declaration that the first defendant, Jang is not competent to re-locate the secretariat of the Forum from its former place in Asokoro Extension, Abuja, to its present place at No.2, Nana Close in Maitama, Abuja.It will be recalled that Jang had last week in Abuja, commissioned a new secretariat of the Forum and subsequently held the inaugural meeting of his faction. Moreover, Fashola in the suit claims that the NGF D-G, Okauru, has been “under pressure” from Governor Jang, to handover to him, the assets and documents of the Forum.Therefore, he has asked the court to declare that Okauru “is not competent to handover the said assets and documents of the NGF to the first defendant (Jang), his agents, privies and servants in any manner and howsoever.” Beyond that, the plaintiff is asking the court to declare that the second defendant, that is, Okauru, is incompetent to use the name to use the name of the Forum in respect of any other organisation which does not have the 36 governors of the federation as members and/or in any other manner inconsistent with the constitution of the Governors’ Forum. Overall, Fashola says he will rely on the NGF’s registered constitution when the trial begins. He wants an Order of Perpetual Injunction restraining both Jang and Okauru, their privies and agents. All the pro-Jang governors were also joined as defendants in the state which could be a long-drawn legal battle of who,between the two factions, will control the NGF, once a united pressure with common interests.But that is in the past now,as the current crisis might either prove the death-kneel of the Forum or a new beginning from the rubbles.

Perhaps oblivious of the suit filed by Fashola, on behalf of the governors in Amaechi’s camp of the troubled NGF, four pro-Jang governors, namely, Jang himself, Governors Olusegun Mimiko (Ondo), Liyel Imoke (Cross River) and Peter Obi (Anambra), took time time last friday and Saturday, in what seemed a damage-control shuttle between Abuja and Lagos to explain to journalists why the faction will refuse to recognise the reported election of Amaechi as the NGF cairmain and why the groups insists on Jang as the winner of that election. One after the other, the four governors gave strong defensive reasons why Amaechi’s should not stood for the election in the first place.They all averred that the NGF constitution does not make room for a second-term for an incumbent chairman.Jang admitted at the briefing in Lagos that he had no ambition to lead the Forum but had to accept the challenge after he was drafted and endorsed by the Forum of PDP Governors few hours to the election, May 24.He said he was motivated by a single-mindedness to provide leadership in trying times.In what he called “Amaechi’s incredible desperation” to remain as NGF chairman did not help matters. Then came Governor Mimiko, who gave so much insight into the current crisis. He stated that his interest to side with Jang was, in his words, “because I have been a victim of injustice in the past and would not like it visited on other person.” Besides, he claimed that “profound irregularities” took place in the election and governor Amaechi was the “beneficiary” of those irregularities,stressing that such anomaly was clear in the ballot papers used for the election. Morally, he said, it was wrong for Gov Amaechi to preside over an election in which he was a contestant.Governor Mimiko admitted that “mistakes” were made by both sides of the divide in what he describe as “a show of shame”. He admitted “naivety” by the pro-Jang governors, which includes himself, noting that head or tail,none of the factions would “come out of this perfect.” Mimiko also voiced Jang’s description of Amaechi as “a desperate man.He delivered a sound-bite: Gov. Amaechi that claims to be a victim,is indeed an aggressor, not the same man the media see as a nice man. Mimiko alleded that Amaechi ran the forum as a “dictator,” adding that Amaechi registered the NGF with the Corporate Affairs Commission(CAC) without consulting majority of the governors. Governor Imoke agrees,alleging that many of the governors “knew the exitence of a constitution providing for re-election of a sitting chairman” until few days to the election date.But governor Obi,the “oldest” member of the Forum by virtue of the number of years among the present class of governors,insists that the constitution of the Forum does not give room for a sitting chairman. Until the contentious election, Obi was the vice chairman of the Forum.What has all this to do with the 2015 Presidential election? Could that be tangential to the crisis? Mimiko said, that could be well be a factor, even though the rumours of Amaechi’s Presidential ambition is still a matter of “conjectures”. But Mimiko said matter- of-factly, if President Jonathan is in any way worried as a section of the media claims,” nobody is happy to see another person eyeing his position”. That, indeed,could be the crux of the matter in the NGF. As governor and past chairman of the Forum, Bukola Saraki was hunted when he was believed to be using the forum to further his presidential ambition.The pro-Jang governors admitted that is what “we don’t want to see happen again. “Nobody,” Jang warns, should mistake President Jonathan’s “humility for weakness.”