Factional group:,BUHARI plan to be sole candidate in 2019 says
John Alechenu, John Ameh, Olusola Fabiyi and Godwin Isenyo
The Peoples Democratic Party has alleged that President
Muhammadu Buhari is planning to be the sole presidential
candidate in the country during the 2019 elections .
It argued that this was the reason agents of the All Progressives
Congress were bent on causing dissatisfaction among PDP
members ahead of 2019 .
The National Publicity Secretary of the PDP , Mr. Kola
Ologbondiyan , who spoke with journalists in Abuja on Thursday ,
said those who opened an “ illegal office” of the party at the
Asokoro District of Abuja were being deceived .
The former ruling party however said such plot would fail, adding
that its members would not be deceived by the ruling party .
The PDP declared that the plot by some of its members to form a
parallel executive was being engineered by the APC .
A group , made up of about five members of the party , had , on
Wednesday, ‘ opened’ a new secretariat for the main party .
The five members are Obi Nwosu, Alhaji Hassan Adamu, Chief
Olusola Akindele , Chief Godwin Duru and Franklyne Edede.
Ologbondiyan however alleged that the APC was coming to
reality about its alleged unpopularity among Nigerians, adding that
the majority of its members would defect to the PDP soon .
He said, “ We will not allow the APC to distract us. APC has
become very worried since we held our convention . As we speak ,
the constitution of the APC requires them to hold convention
every two years but they have not done so .
“ They are so unsettled that the PDP is progressing and
progressing progressively. That is why they are using some people
to cause confusion in our party but we have gone beyond that .
“ What
is
more
important now is that we are embarking on membership drive to
win more members back to the PDP .
“ President Buhari wants to be the sole candidate in 2019 ; that ’ s
why they ( APC ) want to cause crisis in our party .
“ We are going to stand as a party and we are going to fiercely
contest elections in 2019 . Our doors are open to Nigerians and
anyone who is interested in contesting an election in 2019 can
come in .
“ I can assure you that majority of people still hanging around in
the APC are coming back home , the PDP . APC is going to the
next election as an empty party . ”
He said the APC , having failed to scuttle the national convention
of the former ruling party , had realised that the convention
“ marks a new beginning in our sure and steady step to rescue our
dear nation and her people from the misrule of the APC . ”
He said , “ Recall that after our convention , the APC attempted to
inject disagreements and rancour among our members, particularly
in the South- West, but also failed .
“ However , following certain concerns on the outcome of our
convention, our conflict resolution mechanism began to address
the issues that will engender continuous harmony in our fold .
“ Consequently, the National Reconciliation Committee led by
Governor of Bayelsa State , Mr . Seriake Dickson, met with critical
stakeholders and leaders of our party in Abuja , Ibadan and Lagos ,
where very fruitful discussions were held on issues particularly
relating to election into the office of the National Chairman were
better resolved or collectively agreed upon . ”
He said it was, however , strange, unacceptable and outside every
known law and regulation that a group of individuals would come
together and claim to have formed a splinter group of the PDP
and even made attempt to use its colour , name and logo without
authority .
He urged members of the party , who might feel strongly about
the outcome of the convention, to explore the opportunities
provided by the Dickson’s reconciliation committee in line with the
constitution of our great party .
“ Thereafter, any person , who for any selfish reason , resort to the
ignoble part of attempting to create disaffection and disunity in
our party , will be made to face the consequences of his or her
actions as provided for in the constitution of our great party and
extant laws of the land ,” he warned .
They ’ve not learnt any lesson from their past – APC
But the APC said the PDP had yet to learn any lesson from its
sordid past.
This, the APC said, was evident in the ongoing squabbles which
had given rise to a splinter group within the party .
The National Publicity Secretary of the APC , Mallam Bolaji
Abdullahi, said this in response to questions from one of our
correspondents in Abuja , on Thursday .
He was reacting to allegations by the PDP of the House of
Representatives caucus of the party that the APC was behind the
new PDP faction .
Abdullahi stated , “ We are not interested in these individuals ; we
are not interested in the internal affairs of the PDP .
“ Instead of looking for someone to blame , they should search
their conscience and realise that nothing built on falsehood can
stand.
“ It is their falsehood catching up with them less than two weeks
after their convention. ”
He believed the PDP had no one to blame other than itself
because it paid no attention to the grievances within its ranks
when it went about town cerebrating what it claimed was a
successful convention .
“ Their falsehood has caught up with them within two weeks ,
nothing built on falsehood can survive what they are simply
demonstrating to Nigerians is that they have not learnt any lesson
from their past . They should try to sort out themselves. ”
Abdullahi said.
We’ re ready for talks with ‘ Fresh PDP ’ – BoT chairman
But in a fresh twist , the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of
the PDP , Senator Walid Jibrin, said on Thursday that the party
was ready for talks with the new splinter group in the party ,
‘Fresh PDP . ’
Addressing journalists in Kaduna, Jibrin, who refused to refer to
the ‘ Fresh PDP ’ as a faction of the party , said he would rather
refer to the group as aggrieved members of the party following
the outcome of the December 9 , 2017 elective convention of the
party .
Jibrin, who claimed to have had a fruitful discussion with the
leadership of the new group , said from what he gathered from
them, they were already remorseful over their action and ready
for talks .
He explained that members of the aggrieved group said they were
angry with the so called ‘ Unity Lists ’ used during the convention .
He said the election of Secondus as the party chairman of the
party was divine, asking the aggrieved members of the party to
sheathe their swords and embrace the new National Working
Committee of the party .
The BoT chairman warned the PDP members against taking the
party to court without exploring the internal mechanism put in
place to address members’ grievances .
He called on members of the ‘ Fresh PDP ’ to embrace dialogue ,
noting that the leadership of the party was ready to listen and
address their grievances.
Jibrin urged members to guard against being used by the ruling
APC as according to him , the defunct Senator Ahmed Makarfi- led
national caretaker committee had worked so hard to reposition
the party ahead of the 2019 general elections .
He said , “ The BoT is also calling on all those that contested
election with Chief Secondus as chairman to accept the will of
God , the verdict of the delegates and supremacy of the party .
“ The BoT will no longer tolerate a deliberate violation of the
constitution and any attempt by anybody , no matter how highly
placed , to ridicule and undermine the party through any planned
or sponsored litigation . The party has witnessed enough of these
court cases. ”
APC , opposition Reps clash over PDP faction
Meanwhile, the PDP caucus in the House of Representatives said
on Thursday that some politicians going by the name of ‘Fresh
PDP ’ were not known to the party .
The caucus distanced itself from the group , alleging that the
politicians were working for the ruling APC .
The position of the caucus was given in Abuja by the Deputy
Minority Leader , Mr. Chukwuka Onyema.
He said the politicians were deceiving Nigerians by claiming to be a
splinter group of the PDP .
The House caucus called on security agencies to arrest them ,
arguing that they were impostors .
A statement by the caucus in Abuja read partly , “ This band of
impostors has the audacity to arrogate the name of our party ,
the PDP , to its misadventure , using a rented space somewhere in
Asokoro , Abuja .
“ Feigning complete ignorance that the Wadata Plaza national
headquarters of the PDP , that is recognised by the Independent
National Electoral Commission is located at Wuse Zone 5 in Abuja ,
they pasted two copies of our flag on the wall and went to town
like a band of jesters .
“ The PDP House caucus hereby declares that the five leprous
fingers said to constitute the mischievous adventure, do not
constitute any faction , splinter group or whatever fanciful
description they claim within PDP , as they are only serving the
errands of the ruling party and elements planning to use them for
even more mischief early next year .
“ The activities of the said men , claiming to be starting a fresh
PDP , deserve urgent investigation and immediate halt by the police
and the Department of State Services as we would not want
enraged supporters of the PDP to take the law into their own
hands in the process of dealing with such miscreants.
“ There is the need to investigate how far these five leprous
fingers are connected to the APC and its past record of
widespread deceit and unscrupulous propaganda.
“ Our convention has come and gone in the face of a ruling party
that seems so petrified at the thought of facing a re- awakened
PDP , even as it remains unable to hold a national convention like
we did. ”
But the caucus of the APC in the House described the PDP
caucus’ position as “ wild allegations . ”
The Majority Leader of the House and Leader of the caucus , Mr.
Femi Gbajabiamila , said he expected the party and its caucus in the
House to be more concerned with the defection of PDP
lawmakers to the APC .
He stated , “ It is best to leave the PDP to continue to make wild
allegations and chase shadows whilst its members abandon it in
droves as evidenced in the last two days on the floor of the
House. ”fac
The Peoples Democratic Party has alleged that President
Muhammadu Buhari is planning to be the sole presidential
candidate in the country during the 2019 elections .
It argued that this was the reason agents of the All Progressives
Congress were bent on causing dissatisfaction among PDP
members ahead of 2019 .
The National Publicity Secretary of the PDP , Mr. Kola
Ologbondiyan , who spoke with journalists in Abuja on Thursday ,
said those who opened an “ illegal office” of the party at the
Asokoro District of Abuja were being deceived .
The former ruling party however said such plot would fail, adding
that its members would not be deceived by the ruling party .
The PDP declared that the plot by some of its members to form a
parallel executive was being engineered by the APC .
A group , made up of about five members of the party , had , on
Wednesday, ‘ opened’ a new secretariat for the main party .
The five members are Obi Nwosu, Alhaji Hassan Adamu, Chief
Olusola Akindele , Chief Godwin Duru and Franklyne Edede.
Ologbondiyan however alleged that the APC was coming to
reality about its alleged unpopularity among Nigerians, adding that
the majority of its members would defect to the PDP soon .
He said, “ We will not allow the APC to distract us. APC has
become very worried since we held our convention . As we speak ,
the constitution of the APC requires them to hold convention
every two years but they have not done so .
“ They are so unsettled that the PDP is progressing and
progressing progressively. That is why they are using some people
to cause confusion in our party but we have gone beyond that .
“ What
is
more
important now is that we are embarking on membership drive to
win more members back to the PDP .
“ President Buhari wants to be the sole candidate in 2019 ; that ’ s
why they ( APC ) want to cause crisis in our party .
“ We are going to stand as a party and we are going to fiercely
contest elections in 2019 . Our doors are open to Nigerians and
anyone who is interested in contesting an election in 2019 can
come in .
“ I can assure you that majority of people still hanging around in
the APC are coming back home , the PDP . APC is going to the
next election as an empty party . ”
He said the APC , having failed to scuttle the national convention
of the former ruling party , had realised that the convention
“ marks a new beginning in our sure and steady step to rescue our
dear nation and her people from the misrule of the APC . ”
He said , “ Recall that after our convention , the APC attempted to
inject disagreements and rancour among our members, particularly
in the South- West, but also failed .
“ However , following certain concerns on the outcome of our
convention, our conflict resolution mechanism began to address
the issues that will engender continuous harmony in our fold .
“ Consequently, the National Reconciliation Committee led by
Governor of Bayelsa State , Mr . Seriake Dickson, met with critical
stakeholders and leaders of our party in Abuja , Ibadan and Lagos ,
where very fruitful discussions were held on issues particularly
relating to election into the office of the National Chairman were
better resolved or collectively agreed upon . ”
He said it was, however , strange, unacceptable and outside every
known law and regulation that a group of individuals would come
together and claim to have formed a splinter group of the PDP
and even made attempt to use its colour , name and logo without
authority .
He urged members of the party , who might feel strongly about
the outcome of the convention, to explore the opportunities
provided by the Dickson’s reconciliation committee in line with the
constitution of our great party .
“ Thereafter, any person , who for any selfish reason , resort to the
ignoble part of attempting to create disaffection and disunity in
our party , will be made to face the consequences of his or her
actions as provided for in the constitution of our great party and
extant laws of the land ,” he warned .
They ’ve not learnt any lesson from their past – APC
But the APC said the PDP had yet to learn any lesson from its
sordid past.
This, the APC said, was evident in the ongoing squabbles which
had given rise to a splinter group within the party .
The National Publicity Secretary of the APC , Mallam Bolaji
Abdullahi, said this in response to questions from one of our
correspondents in Abuja , on Thursday .
He was reacting to allegations by the PDP of the House of
Representatives caucus of the party that the APC was behind the
new PDP faction .
Abdullahi stated , “ We are not interested in these individuals ; we
are not interested in the internal affairs of the PDP .
“ Instead of looking for someone to blame , they should search
their conscience and realise that nothing built on falsehood can
stand.
“ It is their falsehood catching up with them less than two weeks
after their convention. ”
He believed the PDP had no one to blame other than itself
because it paid no attention to the grievances within its ranks
when it went about town cerebrating what it claimed was a
successful convention .
“ Their falsehood has caught up with them within two weeks ,
nothing built on falsehood can survive what they are simply
demonstrating to Nigerians is that they have not learnt any lesson
from their past . They should try to sort out themselves. ”
Abdullahi said.
We’ re ready for talks with ‘ Fresh PDP ’ – BoT chairman
But in a fresh twist , the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of
the PDP , Senator Walid Jibrin, said on Thursday that the party
was ready for talks with the new splinter group in the party ,
‘Fresh PDP . ’
Addressing journalists in Kaduna, Jibrin, who refused to refer to
the ‘ Fresh PDP ’ as a faction of the party , said he would rather
refer to the group as aggrieved members of the party following
the outcome of the December 9 , 2017 elective convention of the
party .
Jibrin, who claimed to have had a fruitful discussion with the
leadership of the new group , said from what he gathered from
them, they were already remorseful over their action and ready
for talks .
He explained that members of the aggrieved group said they were
angry with the so called ‘ Unity Lists ’ used during the convention .
He said the election of Secondus as the party chairman of the
party was divine, asking the aggrieved members of the party to
sheathe their swords and embrace the new National Working
Committee of the party .
The BoT chairman warned the PDP members against taking the
party to court without exploring the internal mechanism put in
place to address members’ grievances .
He called on members of the ‘ Fresh PDP ’ to embrace dialogue ,
noting that the leadership of the party was ready to listen and
address their grievances.
Jibrin urged members to guard against being used by the ruling
APC as according to him , the defunct Senator Ahmed Makarfi- led
national caretaker committee had worked so hard to reposition
the party ahead of the 2019 general elections .
He said , “ The BoT is also calling on all those that contested
election with Chief Secondus as chairman to accept the will of
God , the verdict of the delegates and supremacy of the party .
“ The BoT will no longer tolerate a deliberate violation of the
constitution and any attempt by anybody , no matter how highly
placed , to ridicule and undermine the party through any planned
or sponsored litigation . The party has witnessed enough of these
court cases. ”
APC , opposition Reps clash over PDP faction
Meanwhile, the PDP caucus in the House of Representatives said
on Thursday that some politicians going by the name of ‘Fresh
PDP ’ were not known to the party .
The caucus distanced itself from the group , alleging that the
politicians were working for the ruling APC .
The position of the caucus was given in Abuja by the Deputy
Minority Leader , Mr. Chukwuka Onyema.
He said the politicians were deceiving Nigerians by claiming to be a
splinter group of the PDP .
The House caucus called on security agencies to arrest them ,
arguing that they were impostors .
A statement by the caucus in Abuja read partly , “ This band of
impostors has the audacity to arrogate the name of our party ,
the PDP , to its misadventure , using a rented space somewhere in
Asokoro , Abuja .
“ Feigning complete ignorance that the Wadata Plaza national
headquarters of the PDP , that is recognised by the Independent
National Electoral Commission is located at Wuse Zone 5 in Abuja ,
they pasted two copies of our flag on the wall and went to town
like a band of jesters .
“ The PDP House caucus hereby declares that the five leprous
fingers said to constitute the mischievous adventure, do not
constitute any faction , splinter group or whatever fanciful
description they claim within PDP , as they are only serving the
errands of the ruling party and elements planning to use them for
even more mischief early next year .
“ The activities of the said men , claiming to be starting a fresh
PDP , deserve urgent investigation and immediate halt by the police
and the Department of State Services as we would not want
enraged supporters of the PDP to take the law into their own
hands in the process of dealing with such miscreants.
“ There is the need to investigate how far these five leprous
fingers are connected to the APC and its past record of
widespread deceit and unscrupulous propaganda.
“ Our convention has come and gone in the face of a ruling party
that seems so petrified at the thought of facing a re- awakened
PDP , even as it remains unable to hold a national convention like
we did. ”
But the caucus of the APC in the House described the PDP
caucus’ position as “ wild allegations . ”
The Majority Leader of the House and Leader of the caucus , Mr.
Femi Gbajabiamila , said he expected the party and its caucus in the
House to be more concerned with the defection of PDP
lawmakers to the APC .
He stated , “ It is best to leave the PDP to continue to make wild
allegations and chase shadows whilst its members abandon it in
droves as evidenced in the last two days on the floor of the
House. ”fac
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