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October 03, 2005
No party cards for Nigeria's VP
Nigeria's Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has been frustrated in his attempts to get a membership card for the ruling party because of a shortage of cards.
Mr Abubakar's name was written in an exercise book in Adamawa State when he went to register, for later processing by the People's Democratic Party (PDP).
The renewal of membership cards has been marred by a party power struggle.
President Olusegun Obasanjo is due to step down in 2007 and Mr Abubakar is one of the candidates to succeed him.
Vice-President Abubakar is reported in the Nigerian press as saying that he could not see how the issue of a membership card could be used to hamper his ambitions to become the president of the country.
But some of his supporters fear that the registration exercise is being rigged to place Mr Obasanjo's allies in key positions throughout the party.
Third term debate
Last month, a leading PDP official called on Mr Abubakar to remain loyal to Mr Obasanjo or resign.
There have been suggestions the constitution might be changed to allow the president a third term in office.
In 1999 and again in 2003 the Obasanjo/Abubakar ticket proved an election winner for the People's Democratic Party, with the vice-president helping deliver the northern, Muslim votes that Mr Obasanjo needed to win.
But according to Nigeria's constitution as it now stands, Mr Obasanjo can only serve two terms so the ruling party will have to pick a new presidential candidate for 2007, and Vice-President Abubakar has never hidden the fact that he would be happy to be that candidate.
Posted by Publisher at October 3, 2005 03:14 PM
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