Fasasi* Accuses Him Of Running Party Like His Private Business
Temidayo Akinsuyi, Lagos
Chief Olabode George, a former deputy national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), said on Sunday that Prince Uche Secondus, national chairman of the party, would kill the party faster if he didn’t put a halt to the ongoing impunity in the party.
While bemoaning the crisis in the Lagos State chapter of the party which has produced two state chairmen, Messrs Adegbola Dominic and Adedeji Doherty, George accused the national leadership of the PDP of running the party like their private companies without recourse to the laid down rules spelt out in the party’s constitution.
He described as fraudulent the decision of the Secondus-led National Working Committee (NWC) of the party to conduct a fresh election into the State Working Committee (SWC) despite a court order calling on the party to maintain status quo antebellum.
According to him, after Justice T.A.O. Oyekan-Abdullahi of the Lagos High Court ordered that the status quo remains in the affairs of the PDP in Lagos State, the notice was made available in the media while a copy of the judgment was also forwarded to the national secretariat of the party for their notification.
He said in flagrant disregard for court orders, the NWC who claimed Dominic was acting as chairman for 90 days still sent a delegation led by Senator Obi to conduct the election which produced Doherty as chairman.
Reacting to the claim by Captain Tunji Shelle, a former state chairman of the party, that Dominic was appointed to serve in acting capacity for 90 days, George accused him of being economical with the truth, saying Dominic was validly elected as a replacement to complete the tenure of Moshood Salvador, the former state chairman who defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
He said: “I have refrained from speaking initially but I can no longer continue to keep quiet when some people are trying to justify illegality and gross impunity.
“What they are doing is illogical and illegal, totally out of the constitution. If they cannot follow the rule as stated in the constitution, they are going to kill the party very fast.
Anything that is illegal, illogical and is going to bring shame to the PDP, I will never be part of it. They cannot continue to run the PDP like their private businesses. This is a national party for the people built by the efforts of our founding fathers.
“During the election of a new state chairman to replace Salvador, I abstained from voting. I didn’t support Dominic or any of the candidates. Shelle was part of the people who voted for Dominic.
“After the election, I said ‘Mr. Dominic, the party people have voted for you, I wish you the best of luck, go and learn the ropes and culture of the party. Work with your people. Why should I get myself involved? It is who the party members want that I will support.
“I have nothing personal against Doherty. I supported him during the last PDP governorship primary in Lagos. However, the man they sent to Lagos to conduct the primary, Victor Oyofo, manipulated the primary in favour of the eventual winner, yet I didn’t utter one word.
“If people don’t allow the will of the people to be respected, the party will continually be in a comatose.”
Speaking on why he shunned the inauguration of Doherty, which took place last Monday, George said he would not associate himself with any illegality as there was a pending case in court on the matter.
“To me, there is a case in court. What they did was not in accordance with the constitution of the party. Whatever the court decides is what I will comply with. Until then, I cannot be seen with any illegality,” he said.
Fasasi
