Former Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives, Prince Chibudom Nwuche was in his days in the House famed as the Tiger on account of his ferocious assertions of the ideals and causes of the House as led by Ghali Na’ aba. Nwuche is stepping out to contest the ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP for Rivers West Senatorial seat. In this interview, he explained why he is seeking a seat in the Senate again, having tried unsuccessfully in 2011. He also spoke on other national issues. Excerpts:
By Joseph Erunke
There are series of complaints arising from the recent conduct of ward congresses of your party, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, what could you say about that?
Prince Chibudom Nwuche
I have recommended with regard to the just concluded congresses that we must ensure that popular delegates are elected across the country. That way, the election itself, will be much easier. Nigerians do not like imposition. They will resist imposition the best way they can because people want free and fair elections. And I know that in a free and fair election, Dr Goodluck Ebele Jonathan will win resoundingly across the country, so I am urging stakeholders to imbibe the president’s position that no public office is worth rigging for, that we should allow those who are ready to serve and those who are popular with the masses to emerge. That way, democracy dividends will trickle down to the masses and they will have a stake in our polity and democracy will endure over a long time. The actors in the democratic system must worry about the health of the polity.
16 governorship aspirants in Rivers State have come out to discredit the recent ward congress conducted in the state and called for its outright cancellation. As a party stalwart in the state that may have monitored the exercise, what is your own assessment?
Well, what I will say is that in a party like the PDP, there are bound to be differences. I am sure that those issues will be sorted out with time and that we shall build a stronger PDP where we shall all be one.
What is your position on issues concerning the defection of Speaker Aminu Tambuwal? Does he have the power to reconvene the House?
I believe that the House has the capacity, guided by its rules and the constitution to resolve the current impasse and that eventually, the issue will be resolved amicably. I think they can resolve it themselves. Any view I take cannot be said to be infallible. What is important is how the members themselves feel and how they can solve the problem. This is an abnormal decision because it hasn’t happened before, this is the first in our political history where a speaker leaves his party to another party.
So it should be handled tactfully but the party must be involved in the process. I believe that the members must sit down and discuss on how to resolve the issue but the implications are enormous because we have not seen where a speaker has left his party to another party. So, it is challenging and a new precedent being set.
Some are arguing that by defecting to another political party, he has therefore automatically forfeited his position as the Speaker of the House of Representatives, is that true?
Well, I think the law in that area is still in the offing. I don’t know categorically what the law said. You know it is for the parliament to make laws and it is for the court to interpret them. I know the case is already in court, so they will know what to do when they interpret the law as regard that.
What would you say about the series of defections?
DEcamped—Speaker Tambuwal after decamping to APC
Well, I believe in people remaining consistent with the parties they have joined. I joined the PDP in 1998, I am one of the founders of PDP in my state and I have not joined any other party since then even though I cannot claim that I have been treated fairly. For instance, I ran for the Senate in 2011 and was rigged out in the primaries even though I won it clearly but I am still in the party.
I am running again this time and I am hoping for a level playing field because my people want me to run for them. They have said so in different fora and I hope that somehow, we shall be able to make it this time. But again, I think that people should be consistent, people should not leave party for good or for bad. They must stick to the party and they must work for the party’s victory and if the party loses in spite of their efforts, they must have the endurance to stay out of government and offer constructive criticisms to assist government to work. This idea of trading or political harlotry is not good for this country
The Senate has not been working since last week following protest by senators of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, that there are plans by the leadership of the party to scheme them out of their re-election bid. The aggrieved senators have given condition to both the president and the leadership of the party that unless they are granted automatic tickets, they will not give their support to any issue again. Some Nigerians are asking whether what they are doing is democratic….
Well, you know that parliament the world over, has no time limit and parliamentarians, I am sure, will grow stronger with the number of time they return to the House or the Senate. From that perspective, it is important that we allow our democracy to mature and grow by allowing members and senators many more terms. Those who are productive or working hard should be given such encouragement because these days, it is difficult for senators and members to emerge because the primary processes are often not as clear as it should be, because the delegates are influenced and they could be guided on who to vote for.
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