Members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have begun intense scramble for the available positions in boards of federal government owned agencies.
President Goodluck Jonathan recently dissolved the boards of statutory bodies such as agencies and parastatals, just as he also inaugurated a committee to select new members of the various boards which will soon be constituted.
The committee, which is headed by Vice President Namadi Sambo also has Senate President David Mark, Speaker of theHouse of Representatives and the PDP’s acting national chairman Alhaji Abubakar Baraje as members.
Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) Senator Anyim Pius Anyim is the secretary of the committee.
The action of the president is seen as customary as the boards areusually dissolved and reconstituted at the end of every four years. To underscore government’s resolve to reconstitute the boards, state chapters of the PDP have been asked to compile lists containing names of likely appointees.
“Yes,? the committee has commenced its assignment, it has asked each state chapter to come up with the list of their likely nominees and we expect that the will turn over their lists in due course for the committee to work on.” a member of the National Executive Committee told LEADERSHIP SUNDAY.
Though the number of slots available is still unknown, it is believed that the acting national chairman of the party might have convened a meeting of the National Working Committee where the state chairmen were mandated to produce the list.
Findings by LEADERSHIP SUNDAY revealed intensive lobby party members who besiege the homes of party leaders. Others have opted to lobby members of the committee.
In the South-West, members have been trooping to the homes of their state chairmen and zonal executive members particularly and homes of Alhaji Tajudeen Oladipo, former president Olusegun Obasanjo and? influential other members.
In Lagos, members have been trooping to the home of Chief Olabode George.
“Most people have been going to the resident of Chief George in Ikoyi hoping to get him to help them get seats in these boards. Some of them have even made his house their new homes, hoping to woo him,” a prominent PDP member told our correspondent.
Apart from trying to secure seats, members are also making efforts to secure appointments into the boards of agencies considered as lucrative while others are scheming to be appointed chairmen of the boards.
The situation has re-opened old acrimony in the party as many of the members feel the arrangement put in place for selecting the prospective members of the boards was inadequate.
Though the agitations have been subdued for now, the limited number of spaces available is expected to throw up another round of acrimony within the ranks of the party.