•Lamido threatens court action if denied forms

From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja

The National Convention Organising Committee (NCOC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has postponed the screening of aspirants for its 2025 elective convention, earlier scheduled for today.

Chairman of the committe and Governor of Adamawa State, Ahmadu Fintiri, in a statement in Abuja yesterday, attributed the postponement to unforeseen circumstances.

“The NCOC regrets any inconveniences caused by the postponement. All aspirants and members of our party should note the foregoing and be guided accordingly.

“The NCOC remains committed to delivering a credible, hitch-free 2025 elective national convention on Saturday, November 15 and Sunday, November 16 in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.” However, a suit seeking to stop the convention comes up for hearing on October 31.

Meanwhile, former Jigawa State governor, Sule Lamido, has threatened legal action if the party failed to sell chairmanship nomination form  to him.

His threat came on the heel of submission of form by the former minister of Special Duties, Tanimu Turaki, yesterday. Turaki promised to reconcile all interest groups in the opposition party if elected national chairman.

Northern PDP stakeholders recently adopted Turaki at a meeting in Abuja. Bala Mohammed, governor of Bauchi; Caleb Mutfwang of Plateau, Fintiri, Dauda Lawal, governor of Zamfara; and Umar Damagum, PDP national chairman, former Senate President Bukola Saraki; Jerry Gana, former minister of information; Abba Moro, senate minority leader and Ibrahim Shekarau, former minister of education, among others, attended the meeting where Turaki was endorsed as the consensus candidate for the chairmanship position.

The position was micro-zoned to the North West, with former governors Ahmed Makarfi (Kaduna), Lamido and Turaki among those eyeing the chairmanship role.

However, some PDP North West stakeholders kicked against the choice of Turaki.

Lamido, while addressing journalists, at the Wadata Plaza, yesterday, said he was at the party secretariat to obtain nomination form but was told the form was not available at the secretariat. He explained that on arrival at the PDP secretariat, he proceeded to the office of the National Organising Secretary, Umar Bature, but it was locked. Lamido said when he eventually saw Bature at the office of the National Secretary, Samuel Anyanwu, both of them said they had no idea where the form was being sold.

“So, I found it a little bit weird that the custodian of the system, National Organising Secretary, is also being locked out because I am coming in. So, they may not be able to go into the office.”

Lamido, who added that he was told that Governor Fintiri was in custody of the nomination forms, queried if he should go to Adamawa to obtain it.

Asked about his likely next line of action, in the event that he does not get the nomination form, he replied: “If I don’t get the form, I will go to court. Simple.”

The National convention where a new national chairman is expected to be elected to pilot the affairs of the party for the next four years, beginning from December 8, has been a bone of contention among interest groups in the party.

Recently, Chairman of the Imo State chapter of the opposition party, Austin Nwachukwu, his Abia State counterpart, Abraham Nnanna and George Turnah, filed a suit at the Federal High Court, Abuja seeking to halt plans for the convention, pending the determination of the substantive suit.

Anyanwu has also petitioned security agencies and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) alleging that his signature in the correspondence to the electoral body on the National Convention was forged.

But both the PDP national publicity secretary, Debo Ologunagba and the chairman of the party’s Board of Trustees (BoT) have dismissed the allegation as misleading.