FG moves against G-7 Govs

Seals off Adamawa House, New PDP secretariat
Lamido, Aliyu to face disciplinary committee
From TAIWO AMODU and FRED ITUA, Abuja
In its fresh bid to whittle down the growing influence of the new Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the Federal Government yesterday sealed off Adamawa Guest House, Maitama, which the new faction of the ruling party had converted into an office. This is even as the Bamanga Tukur led PDP National Working Committee and the Presidency are perfecting plans to drag the aggrieved seven governors to appear before the party’s Disciplinary Committee.
The sealing-off of the Guest House, Sunday Sun gathered was a direct order from the Presidency which was subsequently carried out by the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) administration through its Development Control Department. The Secretariat was sealed-off yesterday, few hours after a notice was served.
But special assistant to the FCT minister, Nosike Ogbuenyi has debunked claims that the seal-off was related to the ongoing PDP crisis. Instead, he said the owners of the building broke the law by converting a residential apartment into an office.
His words: “Following increasing cases of land use contraventions in FCT, the Development Control Department of the FCT Administration took an action by identifying buildings that were involved in the illegal acts.
“As is the usual practice, such buildings were immediately put on notice and those that could not comply were duly sealed off. The exercise is an ongoing one as the administration remains committed to the development of Abuja in compliance with the rule of law including the provision of Abuja Master Plan.
“The exercise is not targeted at any person or group of persons. Rather it is in the collective interest of Nigeria to keep to the letters and spirits of the vision of the founding fathers of Abuja as a planned and orderly Federal Capital. For this reason, nobody is above the law.
“Following repeated inquiries from journalists concerning a particular building affected by the exercise (the Adamawa Guest House, Maitama), I wish to clarify that it is one of the buildings affected because it was illegally converted to office use rather than residential/lodging.
“The FCT administration wishes to assure all residents of FCT that it will continue to do its best to encourage development of the city in all sectors in accordance with the law.
“All developers are advised to ensure that they obtain all necessary approvals from the Development Control Department and other relevant departments before erecting physical structures and altering existing ones or their purposes.”
Recall that the Independent Electoral Commission, INEC  recently turned down the request to recognise the Kawu Baraje factiopn of the PDP. The Acting Secretary General of the Bamanga Tukur faction, U.F. Usman, while responding to the request of the Baraje led  faction to the Commission to be accorded recognition,  had in a letter dated October 2, 2013  informed it  that it would not accede to the  faction’s request. He however noted that INEC was part of the team that observed the 24th March, 2012 national convention that produced Alhaji Bamanga Tukur as national chairman of the party and the 31st August, 2013 special national convention, where his position was reaffirmed.
A Lagos High Court had on Thursday struck out the case instituted by the Baraje faction of the party.
Members of the aggrieved faction which stormed out of venue of the party national convention held on 31st August in protest and announced the composition of a parallel national working committee of the party at the Yar’Adua International Conference Centre include former vice-president, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and the governors of Adamawa, Kano, Sokoto, Niger, Jigawa, Kwara and were later joined by their Rivers State counterpart.
Sunday Sun checks revealed that the Committee which has Second Republic Transport Minister, Dr Umaru Dikko as Chairman and former Transport Minister under the Sani Abacha, regime, Chief Ebenezer Babatope as deputy would be inaugurated next Friday at the party national secretariat.
Speaking with Sunday Sun on phone, the National Publicity Secretary of the parallel National Working Committee, Eze Chukwuemeka Eze declared that his faction was aware of the motive of the disciplinary committee and what he claimed to be” the hatchet job that would be assigned to it.