Anenih Returns as PDP BOT Chairman

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has elected a former Minister of Works, Chief Tony Anenih, to chair its Board of Trustees (BoT), a position which he occupied until 2007 when he was ousted in a palace coup carried out by former President Olusegun Obasanjo and his associates.Anenih was elected after a meeting of the board, held at the Presidential Villa, which ended in the wee hours of today.

The meeting, the third in the last three months, began at about 8.45 pm and ended at about 12.45am.

However, contrary to the previous ones that had been acrimonious, the latest meeting was a sort of coronation for Anenih, a sign that the party had resolved all the contending issues that had stalled previous efforts to replace Obasanjo, who resigned from the position in April 2012.

The board was eventually able to elect a chairman in the person of Anenih followed the report of the verification committee, set up during the last botched meeting, and chaired by former Minister of Information, Prof. Jerry Gana, that streamlined the membership of the board which was over 90.

Emerging from the meeting, Anenih told State House correspondent that he was happy to be the chairman of the BoT, which is "the conscience of the party and comprises elders, men of integrity, honour and experience as members."

He said with his election, "PDP is on the move again" and cannot be stopped by any merger of political parties.

He described the merger of opposition parties to form the All Progressives Congress (APC) as a pack of weak blocks that cannot be used to construct an enduring edifice.

"APC is not a threat to PDP. We never had a strong opposition. Let us see how strong APC will be," he said while promising to work tirelessly to resolve the crisis in the PDP.

The PDP in a statement after the BoT meeting, described the unanimous election of Anenih as a bold step towards ensuring peace and harmony in the party.

In a congratulatory message signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, the PDP expressed confidence that Anenih’s antecedents as a mobiliser and consensus builder over the years will contribute to the   stability of the party.

  “Chief Anenih’s tireless participation and critical role in the formation of the PDP places him in good stead to provide wise counsel and direct the influential Board of Trustees to follow the noble ideals of the founders of the party. His wealth of experience and acclaimed reputation as a democrat and consensus builder are assets that the party needs at this critical point in our democratic evolution,” the PDP said.

Culled from Thisday Newspaper.