The
national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Ali Modu
Sheriff, yesterday stormed out of a meeting called by former President Goodluck
Jonathan to unite the fictionalized party.
Yesterday’s
meeting was the first gathering at which the two factions and nearly all the
party bigwigs sat under one roof in nearly a year.
However,
trouble erupted even before the real business of the day began. Sheriff who
arrived at about 3:10 pm when Jonathan had just ended his opening remarks,
sought to preside over the meeting based on a recent appeal court ruling that
handed over the party to him as its authentic chairman. He also asked to be
allowed to make an opening remark but both requests were turned down.
It
was at this stage that Sheriff walked out with some members of his National
Working Committee (NWC) in tow.
Speaking
with newsmen shortly before he left the venue, the former Borno state governor
said he was shocked at being denied the opportunity to preside over the
meeting.
"The
party as at today has one national chairman, which is Ali Modu Sheriff. There
is no PDP meeting that will take place under any arrangement that I will not
make an opening remark as national chairman.
"I
think Governor Dickson made a proposal and we have accepted it. Other people
have a programme to bring an agenda which is not part of the proposal. And as a
national chairman of the party, I told you people in my office that I will not
be party to anybody using me to do another programme; I will not be," he
said.
When
asked if he has respect for the former president who convened the meeting,
Sheriff said, "I have respected him by flying from abroad to attend the
meeting."
He
added, "We have a programme, which is initiated by Dickson, anything
outside that, I will not be part of it."
The
meeting continued after Sheriff departed. Briefing newsmen at the end of the
meeting, Jonathan said nothing would stop the party from getting out of the
crisis and regaining power in 2019.
He
announced that a committee to be chaired by himself, former Vice President,
Namadi Sambo or former senate president, David Mark would be constituted to
propose a roadmap out of the crisis in two weeks time.
He
said the committee would have members drawn from the Board of Trustees (BoT),
National Assembly Caucus, PDP governors, former ministers and youths and the
women leaders.
During
the opening session, the former president appealed to the two gladiators to
make sacrifices by shelving their 2019 ambition and working as one united
family.
He
said the PDP is a leading light in constitutional democracy, stressing that the
stakeholders should not allow the party to continue to drift.
"We
have to remind ourselves that the prolongation of the crisis in our party may
have cost us so much in election fortunes, in recent time. The loss of Edo and
Ondo gubernatorial elections is still fresh in our memory. It goes without
saying that we cannot afford to have a repeat of that in the forthcoming
elections in Anambra, Ekiti and Osun States.
"It
is high time we buried the hatchet, suppressed our ego and prepared to make
sacrifices in the interest of our party and, indeed the country.
"Our
ambitions therefore must come second; otherwise, we will only be building
castles on quick sand. We must realize that as they say, everybody is nobody
without a platform. So, why destroy the platform?
"As
politicians, with the zeal to lead our people, we must aspire to higher offices
or identify the people we believe have leadership qualities and encourage them
to aspire to those positions.
"But
one thing is very clear: You cannot, as the polity is configured today, be
elected into a higher office on the platform of a weak party.
"There
is no doubt that the PDP will emerge from this moment of trial to regain its
position as the greatest party on our continent. This meeting of today is
therefore designed to stem the drift," the former president said.
Jonathan
added that a smaller committee of not more than 40 members would be constituted
to fine tune the suggestions of the larger body, to finally resolve all the
outstanding issues.
"In
closing, I charge our great party leaders to make personal and general
sacrifices to ensure the quick resolution of the problems in our party. The PDP
is a symbol of democracy. If you believe in the PDP, there is no sacrifice too
big for you to make," he said.
A
chieftain of the party from the north who was part of the meeting and spoke
with Daily Trust on condition of anonymity said: "Sheriff is the only one
thwarting the PDP from re-organising and reclaiming power in 2019. I think he
has a hidden agenda."
He
explained that Sheriff insisted on presiding over the meeting and giving an
opening remarks in the capacity of PDP national chairman.
According
to him, Sheriff insisted that Makarfi must not speak at the meeting but while
stakeholders prevailed on him to sit down as both of them (Sheriff and Makarfi)
were not allowed to speak, he staged a walk out.
Jonathan
arrived Yar'adua Centre, Abuja, venue of the meeting, in company of the
factional PDP chairman, Senator Ahmed Makarfi; deputy senate president, Ike
Ekweremadu; Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State and Sheriff's deputy, Dr
Cairo Ojougboh.
Party
leaders at the meeting were Governor of Ekiti State and chairman of the PDP
Governors' Forum, Ayodele Fayose; Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike; former
governor of Kano State, Malam Ibrahim Shekarau; former minister of aviation,
Chief Femi Fani-Kayode; former minister of special duties, Alhaji Kabiru Tanimu
Turaki; chairman of the party's Board of Trustees (BoT), Senator Walid Jibrin,
former Senate President Anyim Pius Anyim and former political adviser to
President Jonathan, Ahmed Rufai Alkali.
Others
were Governor Darius Ishaku of Taraba State; former senate president, Adolphus
Wabara; current deputy Senate president, Ike Ekweremadu, senate minority leader
and former governor of Akwa Ibom State, Godswill Akpabio; BoT member, Chief Tom
Ikimi; Senator Ibrahim Kazaure; former deputy speaker of the House of
Representatives, Emeka Ihedioha; former governor of Plateau State Jonah Jang;
former national publicity secretary of the party, Chief Olisa Metuh and former
acting national chairman, Prince Uche Secondus.
Governor
Hassan Dankwambo of Gombe State and his counterpart in Ebonyi State, Dave
Umahi, were represented by their deputies.
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