Govs demand review of automatic tickets for PDP senators

            

• Suswam denies Jonathan, lawmakers’ deal

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governors have demanded a review of the agreement to give automatic tickets to the party’s senators. Sources said yesterday that the governors made the demand in Abuja at a meeting they held with President Goodluck Jonathan after his declaration for second term on Tuesday.

The president, at a meeting with the PDP senators, attended by party chiefs, had last week conceded automatic tickets to two senators per state to calm the lawmakers who had embarked on work-torule to protest the alleged connivance between Jonathan and governors to deny them second term. It was learnt that the governors argued that the president should critically examine the issue of automatic tickets to senators. Continue after the cut...

One of the sources said the governors insisted that instead of granting 40 automatic tickets to senators, they should be allowed to take up the issue and review it on a state-by-state basis.

However, the senators saw the governors’ demand as a fresh move to outwit and short-change them. The source said the senators were suspicious of the plan by the governors and resolved to send Senate President David Mark to the president and the party to drive home their point.

“We were told at the meeting that governors met with the president late on Tuesday and resolved that the party should allow them review the issue of automatic tickets to the senators on a state-by-state basis instead of granting automatic tickets to the senators just like that. We see this as a ploy to outwit the senators and undermine our agreement with President Jonathan and the party.

“We believe that the move by the governors is a fresh bid to short-change the lawmakers and reverse the conclusion of the meeting we held with the president and the party. Senators are not happy and I can tell you that a number of people are already contemplating ditching the party,” a source said.

After plenary yesterday, PDP senators held another emergency meeting where they reviewed the situation. It was gathered that the lawmakers resolved to renew their battle with the party and resume the work-to-rule to stop any review of the agreement.

Besides, 11 PDP senators from the North-West have threatened to dump the party in view of what they considered its high handedness. A source said the senators told their colleagues at the meeting that PDP ticket was fast becoming a “poisoned chalice” in the zone and that the treatment being meted out to them by the governors was further compounding the situation.

It was also learnt that the senators decided to strengthen the hands of Mark by asking him to take up the matter and brief them regularly. “If care is not taken, the PDP could become a minority in the Senate before the end of the year.

The danger again is that, going back and forth on agreements reached with the highest organs of the PDP is painting a bad picture of the party,” another source at the meeting said. Meanwhile, Benue State Governor, Mr. Gabriel Suswam, yesterday said neither the party nor Jonathan had promised automatic ticket to any senator.

Suswam, at an interaction with journalists in Abuja, warned that no senator should be under any illusion that he will get automatic ticket as only Jonathan was granted the privilege of first refusal by the party. He said: “So, no president has given any senator any automatic ticket.

There is nothing like that – nobody has promised anybody anything. There is no such arrangement and no person should be spreading falsehood anywhere that the PDP has given automatic tickets.”