News Investigators/ The crisis rocking the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) took a new twist on Tuesday as the Board of Trustees (BoT) announced the suspension of its presidential flagbearer in the last general elections, Rabiu Kwankwaso, accusing him of anti-party activities.
Recall that earlier in August, NNPP had announced the suspension of its general secretary, Oladipupo Olayokun over an alleged anti-party activities.
The party, in a letter signed by Segun Adesegun, the chairman of Ward 5, Abeokuta South, Ogun State, alongside all ward executives, had accused Mr. Olayokun of total neglect of NNPP at the ward level, never participating in party activities, and refusal to vote for neither the gubernatorial candidate nor presidential candidate of NNPP in the last general election.
Similarly, the BoT on Tuesday in Lagos also suspended the entire National Working Committee (NWC) of the party for six weeks.
It also appointed new national officers headed by Agbo Major as acting national chairman and Ogini Olaposi as acting national secretary along with 18 others.
The suspension of Mr. Kwankwaso and the NWC was put to a voice vote by members of the party at its special general assembly, held at the Rockview Hotels in Apapa.
The NWC of the party, on August 24, announced the suspension of the founder of the party, Boniface Aniebonam, and the national publicity secretary, Mr. Major.
Addressing reporters at the end of the meeting in Lagos on Tuesday, BoT secretary, Babayo Abdullahi, accused Kwankwaso of hobnobbing with President Bola Tinubu, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, and the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) Peter Obi, without the board’s authorisation.
Mr. Abdullahi announced that Kwankwaso had been stripped of the NNPP national leader status by the board.
The secretary of the BoT said the purported suspension of the NNPP founder was a flagrant gross violation of the party’s constitution.
He pointed out that Aniebonam had resigned as the BoT chairman and a new BoT Chairman, Tope Aluko, was elected with Abdulahi as new BoT Secretary, while Tony Obioha was elected as BoT spokesperson.
Mr. Abdulahi said the pre-election Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed with Kwankwasia Movement, the National Movement (TNM) and the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) had been rendered void by the actions of the NWC.
According to Mr. Abdullahi, “the purported suspension of the founder is a flagrant gross violation of the NNPP constitution such that it is tantamount to recklessness and irresponsibility on the part of the incompetent NWC.
“The BoT decided that material evidence in the public sector affirmed that Kwankwaso was involved in anti-party activities in various meetings, suggest political discussions with the President, Atiku and Obi without authorisation from the board.
“This has earned him six months suspension pending the outcome of investigation by the Disciplinary Committee.
“The BOT insisted that the avoidable violation of MoU between NNPP on the one part and Kwankwasia, TNM and NAGAFF on the other has no other choice than to withdraw from the partnership.
“It is therefore to state clearly that the MOU have been rendered void.”
Also speaking, the acting chairman said his team would hit the ground running by healing the wounds created by the suspended NWC members.
