Brig. Gen.Don Idada Ikpomnwen (rtd) is a former Provost Marshal of the Nigerian Army and a lawyer. He represented retired officers of the armed forces at the 2015 National Conference. Last Tuesday, Ikpomnwen defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC) from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) which he co-founded in Edo State.
In this interview, the retired general says he dumped the PDP the very day Gen. Muhammadu Buhari emerged the candidate of the APC ahead of the presidential election. According to him, the fall of PDP was predicted by some of them which was why he withdrew his participation in the party following what he describes as the promotion of mediocrity by the leadership of the PDP.
In this interview, the retired general says he dumped the PDP the very day Gen. Muhammadu Buhari emerged the candidate of the APC ahead of the presidential election. According to him, the fall of PDP was predicted by some of them which was why he withdrew his participation in the party following what he describes as the promotion of mediocrity by the leadership of the PDP.
He gives an insight into the mood in the Army when the leadership of the military told the world that they were not in possession of Buhari’s certificate. Excerpts: By Simon Ebegbulem,
Benin City
You were in PDP since 1998 until last Tuesday when you defected to the APC. Was the defection the result of the victory of one of your colleagues, Gen.Muhammadu Buhari, the president-elect?
The truth is that I was not just a member of the PDP, I was one of the founding fathers. I was one of the pillars from Edo that made sure that we went into PDP in 1998-1999. I worked consistently to ensure the success of this party in this state. I was a senatorial candidate.
I was shocked at what happened before and after the primaries. Later the leadership of the party appealed to me to calm down, that they will want me to go to the centre as a party official, I agreed. I got there and started working to ensure that I was elected into the position of the National Deputy Secretary.
The same cabal made sure that another person with less experience emerged. In the circumstance, after the rigged and fraudulent national convention, we went to court but the next thing was that our lawyer started saying things I could not understand and the judge was persuaded to strike out the case.
That led to my disaffection with the PDP and I stayed away for some time. Having experienced all these in politics, I decided to devote my time to the South-South struggle, which succeeded when Jonathan became the President of Nigeria.
Before then, our struggle was almost rubbished when, contrary to our belief that the South-South will not take the vice presidency, some people within the caucus went and arranged with the Northern Forum and they agreed that the South South will take the position if it is given to an Ijaw person.
That angered me and those like me because that was not what we were struggling for. I did not completely stay away from the movement, we continued to pioneer the whole thing from Edo under the South-South Elders and Leaders Forum, it was in this capacity that we operated when the late President Yar’Adua took ill, we kept on pushing that the then Vice President, Jonathan should be sworn as the President. Later the National Assembly agreed with us and went for the Doctrine of Necessity and okayed the Jonathan presidency.
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