ANGRY PDP GOVERNORS VOW TO FRUSTRATE JONATHAN'S DEAL WITH SENATORS

Strong indications have emerged that the reported consummation of a new deal between President Goodluck Jonathan, the national leadership of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and senators on the party’s platform is being threatened.
Governors elected on the platform of the party not only denied knowledge of the deal, but vowed to frustrate any such move aimed at shutting them out to the advantage of the senators.
The reported deal between the senators and the President has however drawn the anger of the governors, who will storm the nation’s capital today. They are likely to meet with the President and Muazu to thrash out the issues before the presidential declaration on Tuesday.
The development may be connected with the sudden postponement of the PDP nomination processes across board.
“It is just normal that we extend in the face of fresh developments that are emerging by the day,” a source told Leadership in confidence.
Unconfirmed reports said the President, Senate President David Mark, as well as the national chairman of PDP Adamu Muazu at a meeting with the senators agreed to effect the return of at least two senators per state.
The meeting, which produced the deal, was called to douse the tension occasioned by the request for automatic tickets by the senators in response to the desire of some state governors to aspire to the Senate come 2015.
The move has shaken the cohesion of the PDP in most states even as the last ward congresses of the party revealed the rivalry between the senators and the governors. In protest, short-changed senators had threatened to withdraw their cooperation with the executive.
One of the governors affected by the peace deal said, “Both the President and the senators are on their own. We shall see what happens in the next one week.
“The reported deal cannot be true at all. You just ignore it. I believe some of the senators are trying to test the waters by spreading falsehood in the media.
“I can tell you that deal will not fly if at all it exists, because there is no way such could be arrived at without the governors in attendance.”
But the ruling party has kept mute in the face of this development. Rather, it said the public should await its official position on the matter.
“I read the story as you did. As far as we are concerned, the party is yet to take a position. An official statement to this effect will be released in due course,” said the national publicity secretary of PDP, Olisah Metuh.