Mark and Tambuwal's Diplomatic Passports Causing Confusion

The fight between the Old and New PDP seems to be taking a dangerous dimension. There was controversy in Abuja on Sunday over alleged move by President Goodluck Jonathan to withdraw diplomatic passports of the Senate President, David Mark, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal, and other members of the National Assembly loyal to the new PDP.

“The implication is that whenever they travel abroad, the 109 Senators and 360 members of the House would no longer enjoy the special privileges the blue-coloured passport confers on its holder, meaning that they can be arrested like ordinary citizens.”

The Peoples Democratic Party’s faction, known as the New PDP, condemned the alleged plan and accused Jonathan of overheating the polity through his recent actions.

The New PDP claimed, in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Chukwuemeka Eze, that the plan to withdraw the lawmakers’ passports was because of their sympathy for it.

The statement reads in part, “We are worried about the dire implications of the reported directive by the Presidency for the withdrawal of the diplomatic passports of the Senate President, David Mark, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal, and all other members of the National Assembly.

“The directive, according to reports published today (Sunday), is attributable to the Presidency’s anger over the lawmakers’ sympathy for the progressive faction of the ruling PDP, led by the Alhaji Baraje."

A national daily had, on Sunday, reported that President Goodluck Jonathan had ordered that the diplomatic passports of all members of the National Assembly be withdrawn.

If the directive is eventually carried out, it would really end up overheating the polity.