From Paul Orude Bauchi
Bauchi State Governor and Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Governors’ Forum, Bala Mohammed, has boasted that he has enough water to extinguish any fire from the Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesome Wike.
He made the assertion when he received a delegation of the PDP National Working Committee (NWC) at Government House Bauchi, yesterday.
Governor Mohammed was responding to a threat by the former governor to put fire in the state of any PDP governor that meddles in the affairs of Rivers State.
Wike, while reacting to the Forum’s call for a review of the PDP congress outcome to restore Governor Siminalayi Fubara’s leadership role in the state had threatened to cause political crisis in the state of any governor that interferes with the party’s structure in Rivers and South South.
“Let me assure all of you, not while we live will anybody take away the structure of the PDP from us. But, let me tell people, I hear some governors who say they will take over the structure and give it back to somebody.
“I pity those governors because I will put fire in their states. When God has given you peace, you say you don’t want peace; anything you see, you take.”
Reacting to the threat, Mohammed stated: “We’re together and nobody can put fire in Bauchi because we have volumes of water. Even my friend that is saying that is just saying it because he is annoyed because I have said something that annoyed him but it is not personal. My friend is my friend, my job is my job, and leadership is leadership.”
Governor Mohammed expressed delight with the visit of leadership of the NWC to acknowledge “our modest contribution to the stability and prosperity of our party and Nigeria that has made us proud and happy.”
He described the visit as unsolicited and a demonstration that there is hope in Nigeria.
“We have people of conscience and we are connected by the values that established the PDP by the founding fathers. Yes, none of the parties is insulated from crisis because crisis is there, that is why leadership is there. You have to take the bull by the horn to discuss and look at the constitution of our party, not only of the PDP but all the parties.
“We must do things by the rule of law, we must respect people, we must put our interest aside, and we must respect our diversity.
“We must bring and close ranks, especially for a party like the PDP that has a history. We have the pedigree. Whatever quarrel we have had is not personal. Nobody should misunderstand us. This is not a splinter group, this is a delegation from the NWC and we are going to discuss some issues that we need to discuss. Certainly, this is really auspicious; your being here, and we are happy that you have come to the home of the PDP.”
Earlier, the leader of the NWC delegation and national legal adviser of the PDP, Ajibade Adeyemi, explained that the visit was to identify with the PDP Governors’ Forum Chairman.
“We are here to also identify with you and to salute your courage as the chairman of the PDP Governors’ Forum.
“A lot of things have been going on in our party and we cannot pretend to say all is well. We are grateful that you and the other colleagues of our governors have taken the bull by the horn.
“So, we made it imperative for us to identify with you and tell you that whatever step taken by the forum, as your representative at the NWC, we will always be glad to implement,” Adeyemi said.
