News: Tom Ikimi, Habitual Decamper, Returns To PDP
Despite his claims
that he is still examining dominant political parties in Nigeria, a
source in the know of Chief Tom Ikimi political moves has confirmed that
he is taking his restlessness from the All Progressive Congress (APC)
for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Ikimi last carried the PDP card about 10 years ago.
Tom Ikimi
Earlier on Tuesday, Ikimi had in a tactical move aimed at getting the
attention of the PDP brass declared that he would officially leave the
APC tomorrow, without disclosing his political destination.“I am at the stage of currently critically re-examining the two dominant political parties in our country, which are the APC and the PDP, in both of which I have had close working knowledge,” he said.
“I have not ignored the other political parties but in the light of the foregoing I must now search to really ascertain where indeed my true political friends exist. I need to be, at this time of my life where I have friends who share a common vision with me and where my freedom, respect, honor and dignity would be guaranteed.”
Our source said Ikimi’s anger at Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and other top shots of APC was on account of their refusal to award him the national chairmanship of the party that he coveted.
The source confirmed that contrary to Ikimi’s tactical deceit in his statement today, everyone knows he is heading for the PDP.
“We wish him well in PDP, we are aware how he used his inability to be [APC] chair to get PDP’s attention and at last he got it, the PDP are highly interested in anything that will destabilize APC and they got him,”he said.
Ikimi, who has a reputation as a man with no particular conviction, bag always packed and ready to leave for greener pastures, was the chairman of the National Republican Convention (NRC) in 1993 and had a front row seat at the annulment of the June 12 elections. Following that event, he described Moshood Abiola on international television as a “criminal,” and neither the winner of the presidency nor a political prisoner.
Ikimi then served as Foreign Minister in the infamous government of Sani Abacha, and was representing Abacha at the Commonwealth Summit in Auckland in 1995 when his government passed the death sentence on the eight Ogoni activists, leading to his expulsion from the summit. He has never apologized for his role in that government.
Following the return to democratic rule, Ikimi moved among the political groupings and parties, always looking for the next soft spot to land. He emerged in the APP, from where he made his first decampment to the PDP.
However, after coming up empty following the 2003 elections where he was neither acknowledged nor rewarded by the PDP or by President Olusegun Obasanjo, Ikimi then denounced the PDP and joined the ACN.
By that time, he had already lost all relevant political footing in the PDP, as his Esan Central District constituency in Edo State had punctured his customary arrogance by placing him on suspension.
In a 12-point citation, they accused him, among others, of:
• Engaging in conduct, which tend to, and are aimed to factionalise, weaken the PDP, and generally bring the party into odium and disrepute;
•Proclaiming himself as the leader of PDP in Okpebho within Edo Central Senatorial District, “a position that is unknown to the party hierarchy and constitution;”
•Gross disregard and breach of the various sections of the PDP constitution;
•Breaking into and destroying the local government and state party secretariat, and harassment of the party chairman in his house during the local government and state congresses;
•Acting unilaterally in matters relating to the party against the wishes, and in spite of protestations of majority of the party members at the ward and local government levels;
•Encouraging and sponsoring violence and thuggery in the local government;
•Substituting a duly screened vice-chairmanship candidate with his relative and former house help;
•Converting into his personal use, an electricity transformer that had been donated to the Igueben Local Government by the state government.
By abandoning one party for another ahead of an election or just after an election, Ikimi consolidates his lifelong political practice of heading for greener and lusher pastures.
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