SAN FRANCISCO, July 04, (THEWILL) – The Senator Ali Modu Sheriff faction of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has stated that the party’s Constitution does not recognise the group called Forum of PDP Former Ministers, adding that the party is evolving into one where one man cannot boast that the party belongs to him.
THEWILL recalls that the former ministers had while addressing journalists shortly after their closed door meeting on Monday, declared their support for the Ahmed Makarfi-led National Caretaker Committee, NCC.
They also challenged President Muhammadu Buhari to contest the 2019 election so that the party can floor him at the polls.
Angered by the vote-of-confidence on the Makarfi-led committee, Sheriff, through his deputy, Cairo Ojougboh, described the group of ex-ministers as an illegal body.
He said, “We want to say first of all that the party’s constitution is very clear, and the organs of the party are specified, from the ward executive committee down to the national convention of the party. On this list, there is nothing like the forum of former ministers.
“We take exception to the comments of this group of persons who met yesterday (last Monday) and called themselves, forum of former ministers.
“We want to say that under normal circumstances, in some countries, these are people who will not normally show themselves in the public. We want to say also that it is very disheartening that persons of these calibre, some of them lawyers, would take impunity to the highest level by declaring that they support Makarfi. Because they are expecting judgment from the Supreme Court, they want to sway the opinion of Supreme Court.”
While assuring that his faction will respect the outcome of the Supreme Court decision on the leadership tussle in the party whenever it gives its ruling, Sheriff said the PDP is a law abiding party that had respected the outcome of the ruling of the High Court in Lagos and Abuja which ruled against the conduct of its convention.
“The PDP that we are rebuilding is not a PDP where one man can say he owns the party. God, who brought Sheriff does not make mistake and Sheriff is the agent of change from anti party democrats in Nigeria. Without the presence of Sheriff, today, I am sure John Oyegun would not have been the Chairman of APC, but the APC also has learnt that they have to respect the party, that the party is supreme.
“God willing, Sheriff will obey the outcome of the Supreme Court, and we do know that we will always obey the rule of law, and we urge the Supreme Court not to be swayed by the posture of these persons who ordinarily cannot walk the street,” Ojougboh said.
