The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) National
Executive Committee (NEC) led by Senator
Ahmed Makarfi, have on Tuesday moved
against Senator Ali Modu Sheriff’s loyalists.
While speaking with journalists after the
74th NEC meeting held at the PDP National
Secretariat in Abuja, National Publicity
Secretary, Prince Dayo Adeyeye announced
the dissolution of the caretaker committees
set up by the former national chairman in
Jigawa and Benue states.
He said all other state caretaker committees
set-up by Sheriff after the February 17
Appeal Court judgment that declared the
former PDP leader as the “authentic”
national chairman, equally “stand
dissolved.”
Speaking further, he said after the Appeal
Court judgment, Sheriff replaced the duly
elected party executives in Benue and
Jigawa and also tinkered with the party
executives in some other states.
“All state caretaker committee set up after
appeal Court judgment on February 17
stands dissolved. (But) If you are properly
elected, we have no issue with that.”
Reacting to the sack of the caretaker
committee chairmen, spokesman of the
sacked NWC, Bernard Mikko said: “They
(Markarfi group) are in charge of the party
now. They can do whatever they like. They
came with an agenda. I don’t want to join
issues with them.”
Also, Adeyeye said the party resolved to hold
its special non-elective National Convention
on August 12.
The NEC, the second highest organ of the
party consists of governors, select members
of the National Assembly caucus in both
chambers, the six national vice chairmen
and state chairmen among others.
Explaining why the NEC decided to hold a
special non-elective, he noted that at the last
national convention in Port Harcourt, the
tenure of the caretaker committee was
extended by 12 months, which would
elapse on August 16.
Adeyeye said it would be impossible to fulfil
all the conditions stipulated by the party’s
constitution for the holding of an elective
convention between now and August 16,
adding that the NEC also resolved to set-up a
standing Disciplinary and Reconciliation
Committees.
He assured that the Disciplinary Committee
was not targetted at any party member or
faction, adding that the party’s NEC also
resolved to amend certain sections of the
PDP constitution.
According to him, some of the proposed
amendments, which have been circulated to
the state chapters, would take care of issues
of discipline, ensuring internal democracy
and the penchant of party not taking
advantage of internal conflict resolution
mechanism before rushing to the court.
The NEC meeting, which is the first since the
PDP crisis broke out on May 21, last year,
was preceded by meetings of the Expanded
National Caucus, National Caucus and Board
of Trustees (BoT).
Speaking after the meeting, former
president Goodluck Jonathan said the
jubilation that greeted the Supreme Court
judgment that sacked Sheriff and put an end
to the leadership crisis was an indication
that Nigerians still believed in the party.
