The uncertainty over the membership of former President Goodluck Jonathan in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) continued yesterday amid reports of his purported resignation from the party.
The report which emerged yesterday comes barely 24 hours after former Jigawa State governor, Sule Lamido, expressed doubts over the former president’s PDP membership.
Lamido, when asked by the BBC during an interview if Jonathan was still a member of the PDP, said, “I doubt it; he has not been attending recent activities of our party.”
The speculation over the former president’s membership of the opposition PDP has become rife since rumours of his defection to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) began to gain traction after the caretaker chairman of the APC, Governor Mai Mala-Buni, led some APC governors to pay a private visit to Jonathan at his Abuja residence two years ago.
Besides Buni, others at the meeting were Ebonyi State Governor David Umahi, who had recently defected to the APC from the PDP; Kebbi State Governor Atiku Bagudu, who is the chairman of the Progressives Governors’ Forum, and Governor Abubakar Badaru of Jigawa State.
Also in the team was Mr. Kashim Ibrahim-Imam, former presidential liaison officer to the National Assembly.
Although the former president’s media team has repeatedly denied any defection move, the absence of Jonathan from party engagements, especially the national convention, and his vague posture towards the party during the governorship election in Bayelsa State have continued to fuel speculations over his allegiance to the PDP on whose platform he served as deputy governor, governor, vice president, acting president and president.
LEADERSHIP gathered that while Jonathan had a not-too-smooth political relationship with the former Bayelsa State governor, Senator Seriake Dickson, his relationship with the incumbent, Senator Douye Diri, is more cordial.
However, when contacted, Mr.Wealth Dickson Ominabo, a media assistant to former President Jonathan, denied knowledge of the claim that he had resigned from the PDP.
According to him,”the report is strange to us. We are not aware of such a report.”
When asked about Jonathan’s resignation from the PDP, the national publicity secretary of the PDP, Debo Ologunagba, said he was not aware of the former president’s resignation.
He, however, added that if Jonathan was to make such a move, he wouldn’t do it secretly.
Ologunagba said, “I don’t have that information. As I speak to you I don’t have that information. If somebody like that wants to leave the party, he won’t do it in a secretive way. He will announce it properly. When that happens, we will take it from there.”
Reacting also, the publicity secretary of PDP in the state, Hon. Ebiye Ogoli, said while they had heard of the rumour, they had yet to be informed.
He, however, maintained that Jonathan remains a bonafide member of PDP.
“Yes, we have heard the rumour but we are not officially aware that he has left the party. We have not been informed. And we believe that the former president is still a bonafide member of the PDP until we officially hear otherwise,” he said.
