NEWS PDP Crisis Festers as Factions Fail to Reach Compromise

Sheriff’s chairmanship Illegal, Makarfi insists Sheriff threatens Fayose, goes on with convention plans APC to fund Sheriff’s planned convention with N450m, Fayose alleges

The crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has taken a turn for the worse, as the warring factions yesterday disagreed over the application of a political solution to end the dispute.

While the embattled National Chairman of the PDP, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff, said he has adopted the recommendations of the reconciliation committee headed by Bayelsa State Governor, Hon. Seriake Dickson, and would go ahead with a national convention, the National Caretaker Committee rejected the move, saying Sheriff remained an usurper of office.

Also, the Ekiti State Governor and Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Governors’ Forum, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, accused the All Progressives Congress (APC) of planning to sponsor the convention being planned by Sheriff with the sum of N450 million.

The caretaker committee, which described the chairmanship of Sheriff as an illegality, urged him to immediately vacate the national secretariat of the party or be ready to face a flurry of legal actions that would force him out of the place.

Making the demand yesterday at a press conference in Abuja, the Spokesman of the factional leadership, the National Caretaker Committee, Prince Dayo Adeyeye, said there would be no genuine reconciliation unless the illegality represented by Sheriff is up-turned by the Supreme Court.

He said the leadership of the caretaker committee has decided that it would have nothing to do with the proposed convention being planned by Sheriff.

“Our attention has also been drawn to a purported proposal by Sheriff and his self-appointed NWC members to organise congresses in Oyo, Kwara, Sokoto, Lagos and Anambra States, respectively. Let the public note that this proposal is illegal by an illegal leadership of the party that is in gross violation of the Constitution of the PDP and the Order of Courts,” he said.

Adeyeye said the position of the caretaker committee enjoys the backing of party organs including, the National Executive Committee (NEC), the Board of Trustees (BoT), the Forum of State Chairmen, the National Assembly Caucus, Governors Forum, the Former Ministers Forum, the National Secretariat Workforce and at least 90 per cent of the party members and supporters nationwide.

He advised party leaders, other members and teeming supporters in the affected states to boycott any congress to be conducted by Sheriff and “his cohorts”.

According to Adeyeye, all further actions taken by “him (Sheriff) and his illegal team will be challenged in court and cannot stand”.

While commenting on the status of the report of the reconciliation committee, Adeyeye said the National Caretaker Committee and all the organs of the PDP are open to reconciliation efforts that would bring lasting peace to the party but will not accept continuous acts of illegality from Sheriff and his team.

“We believe that Dickson acted in good faith but that he was misled by Sheriff. Party members should therefore note this obvious anomaly and ignore proposal from the said Reconciliation Committee,” he said.

On the status of the reconciliation, he said : “We cannot accept Sheriff to organise any convention, nobody can trust him to do that. A man who has been fraternizing with the ruling APC cannot be trusted to organise a convention for us, we would not allow that.”

He challenged Sheriff to show what he has done to oppose the policies and actions of the ruling APC, adding that there is no way PDP will allow a man who has been sympathetic with the government in power to lead an opposition party.

“We cannot allow Sheriff to be the driving force behind the convention of the party. Our teaming supporters should be on alert and way from his convention or congresses,” he added.

On the status of the Dickson committee, Adeyeye said PDP has no standing committee on reconciliation but that some ad hoc committees were set up in April 2016 and inaugurated by Sheriff to carry specific assignment before the May 21 national convention.

Speaking on the illegality of the Sheriff leadership, Adeyeye said apart from the fact that Sheriff is still having a Federal High Court judgement in the FCT standing against him, he has gone ahead to act in breach of the Appeal Court ruling by operating an illegal NWC.

Speaking on the way forward, Adeyeye said the caretaker commitee believes that there is no alternative to legal option except if Sheriff decides to quit office and allow genuine reconciliation to commence.

When asked what the caretaker committee intends to do if the Supreme Court rules in favour of Sheriff, Adeyeye said the committee would take up the other judgement of the Federal High Court presided over by Justice Valentine Ashi which had earlier disqualified Sheriff from acting as PDP national chairman.

On his part, Sheriff has said he and his NWC has met and agreed to implement all the recommendations of the Dickson committee, including organising congresses in states where it has not been held and going on to hold a national convention in Abuja.

As part of his resolve to organise a convention, Sheriff told journalists during a press conference in Abuja yesterday that he would write to all the organs of the PDP to submit the list of their members for appointment into the convention planning committee.

Sheriff said he has welcomed the recommendations of the reconciliation committee as a major part of the political solution envisaged to help end the party crisis and further expressed optimism that it would win the support of party organs.

He said he has directed the National Organising Secretary to commence immediate processes for the conduct of congresses in states, Oyo, Kwara, Sokoto, Lagos, Anambra and Sokoto, beginning with Anambra state.

A visibly angry Sheriff commenced the briefing by expressing his discountenance over negative comments made against him by Fayose.

Sheriff warned that he would no longer tolerate name-callings and insults from the Ektiti State governor, Fayose.

“Let me make clear to some of the party members, particularly, Governor Ayo Fayose. I will not condesend to his level. I must be very clear to him, party has rules, and we will look at the constitution, at the appropriate time to do the right thing.

“He has made it a point of duty, everyday that he will be insulting