The ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is unable to renew the rent of its campaign headquarters in Abuja, otherwise called the "Legacy House", an indication that the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party is not financially buoyant.
LEADERSHIP SUNDAY findings indicate that the owners of the said property had written and informed the leadership of the party of the upward review of the yearly rent from N250 million to N350 million at the expiration of the current rent this year.
The building, a three-storey building at the heart of Maitama District, was first acquired during the Obasanjo administration to serve, among other things, as the campaign headquarters of the party's presidential candidate in the run-up to elections.
Both former president Umaru Musa Yar'Adua and incumbent president Goodluck Jonathan's campaign coordinators made use of the facility.
However, with the emergence of the Alhaji Bamangar Tukur-led NWC early this year, the national chairman showed preference for the Legacy House for his administrative duties instead of the national secretariat at the Wadata Plaza in Wuse Zone 5.
Most members of the NWC resisted Tukur's attempt to force them to move to Legacy House.
LEADERSHIP SUNDAY investigations revealed that the party's NWC members do not regard rent payment as their responsibility.
"It is not our responsibility. In fact, the NWC has never been responsible for the payment of the rent of the Legacy House," a member of the NWC confided in LEADERSHIP SUNDAY.
It was learnt that the national chairman of the party had reached out to President Jonathan over the threat to eject the party from the property if it is unable to pay the new rent of N350 million per annum.
But our source said that President Jonathan was not favourably disposed to paying the new rent as, according to the source, "there is no activity going on to warrant the renewal".
The party's dilemma, LEADERSHIP SUNDAY learnt, was worsened by the fact that the relationship between the NWC and state governors elected on the platform of the party is far from being cordial and the governors have stopped supporting the party financially.
Contacted on the issue, the national publicity secretary of the party, Chief Olisa Metuh, told LEADERSHIP SUNDAY that the issue of payment or renewal of rent for Legacy House "is not on the bill of the National Working Committee (NWC)".
For his part, the national secretary of the party, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, declined responding to our enquiries. But a source in his office told LEADERSHIP SUNDAY that information on such issues were better sourced from the office of the principal staff secretary to the national chairman, Senator Ibrahim Idah, whose telephone lines were not available up until the time of going to press.
Comments Post a comment
PDP as a political party have no moral base to be my tennant if I have the priviledge to be their land lord.Every other party formed in Nigera with similar husm hush looters and rougues have failed to serve beyond temporary purpose to empty the national purse and go into oblivion .The difference this time is the dominant players in the formation of that reprehensive party this time around is populated by primarilyIbos and Southern individuals with PHDs awarded by unknown Universities at Aba and Ochanja Markets with minimum donations to fund that party. Those sponsors did not fail in their culture of loot, plunder and run in an unsupervised political environment . To substantiate my point, Dr. Orji uzor Kanu and co-governors had such titles to inspire innocent obervers to some modicum of confident when I heard the governor of my State was educated and knows the act of poltical wisdom . His leadership quality was anything but that quality of an educated person . These rougue governors and council heads came out from the States they ruled brandishing new wealth, far much richer while those States become more impovrished than ever prior to their entry, The Iboris and the rest of them looted and vandalized Council and State treasury like enemies will do to conquared town. Schools , water supply , power and roads were abandoned and access road to villages and local roadway to agricultural famlands have been in derelict. Question is , what to expect if leaders born in village communities fail to provide for areas they're aware of economic and strucutral imparatives ? Big shame beyond reason . MR (DR) Kanu is currently under pursuit by Igbo leadership to account for monumental wealth he amassed after running the state to poverty .