Fear grips PDP faction in House as panel concludes probe

• Don’t suspend us – Rep Chinda begs Speaker

Tension is high among members of the Kingsley Chinda-led faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) at the House of Representatives over the recommendation of a probe panel constituted to look into the crisis rocking the minority caucus, Daily Trust reports.

Our correspondent reports that two factions of the minority caucus exist at the House. One is led by Ndudi Elumelu (PDP, Delta) and the other by Kingsley Chinda (PDP, Rivers).

Following the festering crisis, Rep Ben Igbakpa sponsored a motion and urged the House to probe the matter. The matter was thus referred to the Ethics and Privileges Committee chaired by Kolawole Lawal for investigation.

The panel, our reporter gathered, would submit its report this week, barring any last minutes change.

It was further gathered that the committee has in its report recommended for the suspension of members of the Chinda-led faction for parading themselves as leaders of the PDP caucus in the House.

Others in the top echelon of the Chinda camp are Chukwuma Onyeama, Ajibola Muraino and Yakubu Barde. They are all recommended for suspension, according to findings of our reporters.

Speaking yesterday, Chinda urged Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila not to succumb to pressure being mounted on him to suspend them.

He said he and members of his faction have been in talks with the speaker to sort things out and the talks have been very fruitful.

He said: “I’m shocked to hear that this issue is resonating. I don’t think the speaker will concede to suspending us from the House. The speaker won’t even push for the suspension of a member from parliament for any reason whatsoever, talk less of a cooked up, flimsy and hollow reason.

“The speaker is very knowledgeable in parliamentary practice and a lawyer. He knows that it is unconstitutional to suspend an elected member and he had stood against it in the past. I don’t think he will change his stand now.”

The PDP factional caucus leader, however, called on his colleagues in their camp to prepare for what will come next as the politics of the House regarding the matter thickened.

“Anyway from hindsight and the level of horse-trading in politics and the House in particular, I advise my other three colleagues to brace up for the worst. If we are suspended via a majority vote in the House, then I pity the parliament and parliamentarians, because it means no member will have an independent opinion anymore,” he said.

Contacted, spokesman of the House, Benjamin Kalu (APC, Abia) said: “To my knowledge and like I earlier pointed out, the interference of any political party in the affairs of the legislative institution is frowned at by our House rules, therefore PDP national executives have no business determining who is to lead the House caucus of their party, rather they can achieve that through the instrumentality of their members in the house.

“To the satisfaction of the leadership of the House, these PDP members chose Ndudi Elumelu, the minority leader, to head the leadership of their leaders in the House, why we are still on it is what bothers me.”