THE national leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has accused claimant to the office of the national chairman of the party, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff of frustrating the party on all fronts.
This accusation followed the loss of the party in the last Saturday’s Ondo State gubernatorial election to the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC).
In a reaction to the claim by the Sheriff faction which had blamed the loss on impunity and lack of respect for the party’s constitution by the National Caretaker Committee, spokesman of the party, Mr Dayo Adeyeye, said in a statement issued in Abuja, on Monday, that Sheriff and his group have deliberately ignored the ruling of the courts on the leadership crisis in the party.
The PDP described the faction’s claims as “another set of garbage and tissues of lies put together by the discredited loyalists of Senator Ali Modu-Sheriff in the name of a press statement wherein, the group tried to sustain it’s illegal claim to the leadership of our Party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).”
The party spokesman recalled that the National Caretaker Committee had been confirmed several times by the Courts as the authentic body saddled with the responsibility of providing leadership for the party pending the hosting of an elective Convention, noting the it “would have ignored the ranting of these men of dishonour but leaving them to continue deceiving Nigerians at this time would not be in the interest of democracy.”
PDP added: “First and foremost, we wish to state categorically that in consonance with Judgement of various Courts, which Ali Modu-Sheriff and his team of confused travellers have not bothered to appeal, the former Borno State Governor is not the Chairman of our Party, the PDP.
“His consistent claim to the Office is a continuation of the plans to cause mayhem in our Party but nature and fair justice has taken care of his desperation.
“It is amusing that these musketeers could be accusing the National Caretaker Committee of being the reason why the Party is facing challenges in terms of unfavourable election results especially in Edo and Ondo States when it’s not a secret to all Nigerians that these group of non-PDP members were the ones who frustrated the Party on all fronts.
“It is common knowledge that Barrister Jimoh Ibrahim whom they pushed as front at the Ondo Poll before the Appelate Courts reversed the anomaly, openly campaigned for their Party, the APC.
“We are also aware of the various claims made in the statement wherein the agents of darkness, used by the All Progressives Congress (APC) to cause confusion and frustrate our campaign for the Ondo Election, accused the Caretaker Committee of impunity.
“However, we simply want them to define what impunity is, using their acts of betrayal as a case study. What they have done and are still doing is the worst form of impunity, lawlessness, greed and avarice.
“No matter what they say, we are determined as a political Party to forge ahead, and put our house in order even without their inputs.
“The National Caretaker Committee have not called for their expulsion against the claims they are making, the time for that has not come. But the rain of vengeance will not hang forever in the clouds.”
While praising its loyal members, the party urged them to keep the faith “as the Appellate Courts will do justice to the various appeals pending before it at the appropriate time; to put an end to the antics of these enemies of progress masquerading as members of our party.”
