The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has been hit by factional crises following the sack of its national chairman, Ali Modu-Sheriff by some aggrieved founding fathers of the party.
The party chieftains under the aegis of Concerned PDP Stakeholders also set aside all the decisions already take by Sheriff-led Executive towards the national convention.
The group therefore constituted a 21-member steering committee at the end of a meeting in Abuja “to manage the affairs of the party.”
The communiqué issued at the end of the summit and signed by the co-chairmen, Prof Tunde Adeniran and Ibrahim Mantu, reads, ”Restoring PDP Moral Compass to the Ideals of Our Founding Fathers and Expectations, we, the founding fathers, stakeholders and leaders of the party from all the six geo-political zones hereby announce a 21-member steering committee to manage the affairs of the PDP
The committee will work intimately with our respected members of Board of Trustee (BOT) who are the conscience of the party.
“The committee will work with the BOT till such a time that a proper, lawfully organised National Convention of the party, where a new authentic leadership of the party will be duly elected’’.
“The new steering committee will soon embark on a nationwide tour to address and resolve all issues and areas of conflict in every state of the federation.
“A national convention to elect the new executives ought to have taken place or a caretaker committee put in place to run the affairs of the party till the party holds its convention
Following the above therefore, all actions purportedly taken by the said NEC and the NWC constitute a nullity and are of no effect.
“The actions include; the Ward, Local Government, State Congresses and the planned National Convention of the Party slated for May 21 in Port Harcourt.
“The zoning arrangement as announced by the chairman of the ‘purported’ Zoning Committee, headed by the Governor of Akwa-Ibom, Emmanuel Udom, is unacceptable.
“The zoning clearly runs contrary to our party’s established principles and practice, which have sustained the party in continuous unity for the last 18 years.’
“We need to come together as a family to fight the cancer of impunity that has eaten deep into the tissues of our party.”
