With barely two weeks to the general elections, the national chairman of PDP, Dr. Adamu Mu’azu and his deputy, Uche Secondus, are presently engaged in a cold war over the chairman’s alleged refusal to part with some of the cash he received from aspirants in what informed sources described as a huge shakedown scheme allegedly perpetrated by Mu’azu to squeeze cash out of aspirants who wanted to emerge flag bearers of the party at the primaries.
According to reports, sources close to both men said the cordial relations between the two leaders turned frosty when Mu’azu, who is presently out of favour with President Goodluck Jonathan, allegedly refused to give Secondus anything from the money estimated at about N450 billion.
The bickering over the funds has also fragmented the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) with members’ loyalty divided between both leaders.
The huge funds were said to have been received before the December primaries of the party from mostly top governorship and national assembly aspirants as well as their promoters.
It was authoritatively gathered that some governorship aspirants paid out as much as $10million to Mu’azu who in turn allowed them handpick delegates as well as electoral officers for their primaries.
However, the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) has opened investigations into one of the dealings where Ndudi Elumelu, a governorship aspirant from Delta State, was allegedly made to pay about N750million but eventually failed to clinch the party’s ticket.
Our sources said the corruption in the party has spread to the presidential campaign organisation where members have been stealing funds meant for the campaign organization, a case that has forced President Jonathan to personally supervise his uphill bid for re-election on March 28.
