Jonathan faces new rebellion over Sambo

— January 11, 2014
In spite of the solidarity visit of the North West Caucus of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to President Goodluck Jonathan, strong indications emerged yesterday that the question of a running mate for the next election is far from settled.

The caucus is still deeply divided over the continued stay of the Vice President, Mohammed Namadi Sambo, in office beyond 2015.

The caucus had visited President Jonathan on Thursday at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, in what is seen as an effort to shore up support for the embattled vice president who is struggling to establish firm control of the PDP in the zone.

Hundreds of party faithful in Kaduna, the vice president’s home state, have defected to the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) in recent weeks.

Sources at the Thursday meeting disclosed that some of the leaders in the delegation, particularly the Katsina State Governor, Ibrahim Shema, were upset that what was meant to be a goodwill visit to the president was hijacked by the vice president’s camp as proof of his endorsement and clout.

A source said that the speech by a member of the delegation, Dr. Haliru Bello, which endorsed Sambo, was “nothing short of an ambush.”

“We did not know – and we doubt if Dr. Bello himself knew – what the speech contained. We were embarrassed because we had been given the impression that it was just going to be a goodwill visit to the president,” the source said.

With a voter strength of over 18 million, the North West boasts the highest number of voters in the electoral roll and a number of party heavyweights in the zone are waiting in the wings either to have a shot at the number one spot or to topple the vice president.

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