PDP crises: Sheriff blows hot, warns BoT

• As 8 NWC members dump him

From Taiwo Amodu and Molly Kilete, Abuja

FORMER Borno State governor and factional chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Ali Modu Sher­iff has warned the party’s Board of Trustees (BoT) to drop its move to ap­propriate functions of the National Working Com­mittee (NWC).

Following conflicting orders by courts of coor­dinate jurisdiction in La­gos and Port Harcourt, on Tuesday, on the authentic leadership of the party, BoT secretary, Chief Ojo Madueke told newsmen that the BoT would as­sume leadership, to avoid a vacuum in the opera­tions of the party.

The former minister of transport declared that the conflicting court or­ders made it expedient for the BoT to step in.

But, Sheriff told Daily Sun, through his media aide, Inua Bwala, that by the judgment of Justice Hussein Buba of the Fed­eral High Court, Lagos, he remains the authentic chairman of the party.

Sheriff said it would amount to an infraction on the party’s constitu­tion and contempt of court for the BoT, which he described as merely advisory body, to usurp the functions of the NWC.

“There is no vacuum; Sheriff is fully in charge, there is no vacuum in PDP.

“What the Ahmed Ma­karfi committee had was a court injunction; our own was a declaratory judg­ment.

“So, which one is su­perior? Who is Ojo Ma­dueke, who was just ap­pointed as BoT secretary? He shouldn’t drag himself into a fight he can’t finish, because BoT role is mere­ly advisory.”

Regardless, Sheriff’s claim to the leadership of the party suffered a setback yesterday when eight members of his 12-member NWC resolved to abide by the proclama­tion of the national con­vention, which created a caretaker committee with Makarfi and Senator Ben Obi as chairman and sec­retary, respectively, along with five others.

Daily Sun gathered that Professor Wale Oladipo, and Wale Adeyanju, the national secretary and na­tional auditor in the NWC dissolved in Port Harcourt are still with Sheriff.

The trio were the plain­tiffs in the suit, which cul­minated in the restraining order of Justice Hussein Buba, asking the party not to conduct elections into the office of national chairman, secretary and auditor.

It was also gathered that those who have re­solved to accept and work with Makarfi’s team in­clude Uche Secondus, Onwe Solomon and Vic­tor Kwon, former deputy national chairman, depu­ty national secretary and national legal adviser.

Others are Ambassador Kema Chikwe, Abdullahi Maibasira, Bolaji Anani and Buhari Bala, former national woman leader, national youth leader, na­tional financial secretary and national treasurer.

Chief Olisa Metuh, na­tional publicity secretary has equally dumped Sena­tor Modu Sheriff while the national organising secretary in the dissolved NWC, Abubakar Musta­pha sits on the fence.

The eight members in a communique issued at the end of their meeting in Abuja resolved to “ac­cept without equivoca­tion all decisions and res­olutions of the National Convention of PDP held at Port Harcourt on 21st May 2016” and “ recog­nise the Senator Ahmed Makarfi-led national care­taker committee and offer the committee all our sup­port and cooperation.”