PDP crisis: National convention not negotiable -Caretaker

• Party begins sale of forms March 23

From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) National Caretaker Committee backed by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has said there is no going back on the National Convention scheduled for March 29 and 30.

The National Publicity Secretary, Jungudo Mohammed, who stated this while unveiling plans for the exercise, yesterday, in Abuja, said sale of nomination forms for aspirants for National Working Committee (NWC) seats would begin on March 23 and end on March 25, stating that the convention would be preceded by an emergency meeting of the National Executive Committee (NEC).

The PDP has been polarised since November last year, where a convention organised by the immediate past leadership of the party led by Umar Damagum and backed the governors, elected a new National Working Committee (NWC) headed by Tanimu Turaki.

In the aftermath of the convention, loyalists of the FCT minister set up a 13-man Caretaker Committee chaired by Abdulraham Mohammed to administer the PDP pending the conduct of their own convention.

Attempts by both groups to hold their respective meetings at the party’s national secretariat, the Wadata Plaza, on November 18, resulted in a bloody clash, with the police sealing up the plaza, as well as the party’s presidential campaign headquarters, the Legacy House.

However, the Court of Appeal, Abuja Division, on March 9, nullified the Ibadan convention and upheld the judgment of the Federal High Court, Abuja, which barred the party from going ahead with the exercise until it has complied with the extant laws.

Also, the Court of Appeal, Ibadan, in an appeal on the PDP leadership tussle, advised the parties to explore a settlement and get back to it.

The chairman of the Board of Trustees (BoT), Adolphus Wabara, while speaking at an expanded board meeting, said the party would explore a settlement as advised by the Court of Appeal.

Nonetheless, Mohammed noted that while the caretaker committee is disposed to a reconciliation with the Turaki camp, the convention would hold as scheduled.

According to him, “Reconciliation is an ongoing thing and it cannot in any way prevent the caretaker committee from carrying out the convention. If you recall, we had initially informed the representative of the Turaki group who attended our last NEC meeting that whatever their written proposals may be, two things remain sacrosanct: the existence of this caretaker committee and the conduct of this National Convention.

“So, irrespective of whatever reconciliation that is likely to happen, it will not affect the conduct and processes leading to this convention. We are still open for reconciliation.”