PDP chairman goes to South in 2018

 

Ahead of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) national convention, former Transport Minister, Chief Ojo Madueke, has emerged the Secretary of the Board of Trustees (BoT) of the party.

The party leadership has also reviewed its zoning of the PDP National Chairman to the North.

Instead of the region holding the position till 2019, it will relinquish the office for the South in 2018. The North will however produce the PDP presidential candidate for the 2019 election.

These decisions were reached at the party’s meeting in Abuja on Monday.

The BoT, which held its meeting at the PDP National Secretariat, with the National Chairman, Ali Modu Sheriff in attendance, had earlier threatened that the convention would not hold and that Sheriff and members of the National Working Committee (NWC) should vacant office by May 21.

The board backed the activities of Sheriff, saying the Chairman has done very well in his role in reaching out to aggrieved members and by extension fighting for the unity of the party.

In its resolutions read by Madueke, the BoT said:

“The convention will go ahead as planned. The grievances in the party will be looked into to see how we can carry everybody along. Certain states had problems during the congresses and we will also look into that.”

Madueke, who was unanimously elected by the board members during its meeting that lasted for about six hours, said that it would be a national tragedy “if we allow PDP to die after 16 years in power.”

He argued that the board is not a rubber stamp, adding that the survival of the party is paramount.

The board also backed the suspension of any amendment to the party’s constitution, explaining, while fielding questions from newsmen that even though the party zoned the chairmanship position to the North East and Presidency to the North, by 2018 during its mid-term election, the position would automatically shift to the South.

On whether the shifting of the position to the South would be honoured, Madueke, who was Ambassador in the last regime, said that “by the collective wisdom and strength, the party will ensure that the commitment is honoured.”

Earlier, Sheriff had said that for peace to reign, the party would not consider the amendment of the constitution during its National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting holding today (Tuesday).

Sheriff said the ongoing amendment of the party’s constitution would be put on hold while the party will work to resolve other problems affecting it before the May 21 National Convention.

Although the Chairman said he was not the chairman of the party when the constitution amendment was undertaken, he said as a leader, he accepted the responsibility and blames traded by members arising from the exercise.

On the flawed party congresses, the National Chairman stated that a committee would be setup to review the conducted congresses with a view to correcting the attendant problems.

He also disassociated himself from the insult on the Jerry Gana-led Concerned PDP Stakeholders, saying he did not authorise his aide to engage in such a misadventure while apologising to the affected elders.

Sen. Walid Jubrin, who is now the substantial Chairman of the BoT, told the gathering that the various groups which hitherto disagreed, have been meeting and have collapsed into one after reaching an understanding on issues affecting the party.