PDP crisis: Fear grips Delta Makarfi group over fear of losing office

The fear of the Ali Modu Sheriff faction of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has gripped leaders of the Ahmed Makarfi faction in Delta state. This is so as the party leaders, including the state governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, are becoming jittery as there are fears that the party structure led by Kingsley Esiso, Delta state chairman, could be dismantled by the Sheriff faction if the Supreme Court eventually proclaims victory for the Sheriff group.

Although the Makarfi leaders are consoling the people to remain steadfast and faithful with their commitment to the party on the ground that the issues under contention do not involve the ward to the zonal chairmen, the leadership of the party in the state is unsettled as to the outcome of the Supreme Court judgment which will finally put paid to the almost one year tussle.

Ever since the judgment delivered by the Appeal Court sitting in Port Harcourt in favour of Sheriff, the party leaders in the state have been running helter skelter to assuage the fears of the people, holding stakeholders meetings to strengthen the hope of their members in the state.

On Friday, February 24, 2017, the party leaders gathered the people of Delta Central for a stakeholders meeting, persuading them to remain calm as there is no cause for alarm. The leaders are banking on the fact that they have a higher support from the party members across the country, noting that Sheriff has no followers among PDP members in the country.

On Saturday, February 25, 2017, the party also gathered all stakeholders across the state for a meeting at the state secretariat in Asaba. The meeting was specifically convened to also assuage the fears of the people over the outcome of the decision of the Court of Appeal in Port Harcourt, Rivers state.

READ ALSO: PDP crisis: Sheriff is not in the good books of the majority

In the meetings, Governor Okowa assured the people that the ongoing crisis does not affect the ward to the zonal levels of the party, noting that the crisis only has to do with the national convention that was held at Port Harcourt on May 21, 2016. Okowa told the various chairmen that gathered that their offices are not being challenged, hence they should go about their functions without fear of losing their offices.

He explained that the decision taken by the convention that created the crisis from Port Harcourt was the right decision. Following his conviction, he said the Sheriff faction is wasting its time, insisting that the Supreme Court would reverse the decision of the appellate court. He said Sheriff’s faction cannot run the party without the governors, who have stoutly stood against his leadership having been ousted by the Port Harcourt convention on May 21, 2016.

Senator Peter Nwaoboshi, who represents Delta North in the National Assembly, told the party members to be steadfast, adding that the PDP senators are in full support of the faction led by Ahmed Makarfi. He explained that all PDP members in the national assembly are behind the Makarfi group. He said: “I am telling you that 98 percent of the senators minus two are with Makarfi, so do not be discouraged.”

Also, Delta state chairman of the party, Kingsley Esiso, is also optimistic that the Makarfi faction has no cause for alarm. He said: “Last week Monday, the Court of Appeal in Port Harcourt made a judgment, we were not too happy with the decision it gave. After that we went to Abuja to attend a stakeholders’ meeting, all of us from the entire country. We all agreed to stand behind the leadership of Makarfi. Right now, we are in the Supreme Court, we are believing that we will get victory.”

Esiso, who may lose his office as state chairman should Sheriff win again at the Supreme Court, also assured the people that all elections from the ward to the zonal levels are intact, consequently the leaders have no cause for alarm, even as he expressed faith in the Supreme Court to reverse the decision of the appellate court.

However, the Makarfi faction in the state has issues with the Sheriff group. On February 14, Sheriff and his group were in Asaba to hold a meeting but they were chased away by thugs allegedly ordered by the state governor, Ifeanyi Okowa. It was gathered that prior to the group arriving the venue of the meeting, the thugs had stormed the place and sent Sheriff team packing from the hall.

READ ALSO: PDP crisis: Governor Okowa optimistic that Makarfi faction will win at Supreme Court

The group, whose south south chairman is Dr. Cairo Ojougboh, moved the meeting from Asaba to Agbor, headquarters of Ika south local government area of the state. There at Agbor, Sheriff told the people that he is the authentic chairman of the party, noting that any other person parading himself as chairman, is counterfeit, photocopy and should be discarded.

He told the people that he was in his house when he was called to become chairman of the party, and as such he must hold on to the chairmanship of the party. He said nobody could remove him except the courts.

In the event, Ojougboh was said to have pointed accusing fingers on Okowa as the one who allegedly masterminded the disruption of the town hall meeting in Asaba. He said Governor Okowa was afraid, he then sent thugs to disrupt the meeting at Asaba because of what the outcome of the town hall meeting would do to his hold on some of the party members in Delta.

In his words: “Without mincing words I can tell you that it was Governor Ifeanyi Okowa who sent thugs to disrupt our meeting at Asaba, but we left the venue for him quietly because we don’t want to fight with him, we want our people to judge him by his actions, which could have led to the breakdown of law and order.

“We are not diplomatic about it; it was Governor Okowa who sent his thugs to disrupt the meeting of PDP faithful, which is a very sad commentary. He is afraid, so we took it to Agbor. And I can tell you that the meeting was the most successful political party meeting ever held in Delta state.

“We had over 5000 PDP faithful who came to the meeting, ask your fellow journalists who came to Agbor, it was very successful.

“I also want to correct an impression, there is no faction in the PDP, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff remains the National Chairman of the PDP, anybody claiming that he is a member of PDP and is not with us, would have himself to blame.”

Ojougboh, the south south chairman of the party is bent on frustrating every effort of the Makarfi faction in the state. Ojougboh, who hails from the same federal constituency with Governor Okowa has been having running battle with the governor. He is highly displeased with Okowa and as such it is believed that Ojougboh is set to thwart all plans of Okowa to perpetuate his group in power.

His faction had faulted the emergence of Kingsley Esiso as Delta state chairman, insisting that Esiso was not sworn in by the authentic national chairman, hence he cannot parade himself as chairman of the PDP in the state.

The faction which has Austin Ogbaburon as state chairman, has said that the emergence of Esiso was against the PDP constitution.

Publicity secretary of the group, Isaac Ulebor said: “The national chairman swears in zonal and state chairmen, state chairmen swear in local government chairmen while local government chairmen swear in ward chairmen. Hence, Esiso cannot parade himself as chairman because he was not constitutionally sworn in.”

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Although there were representatives from the national headquarters of the party during the inauguration of Kingsley Esiso in Asaba, Ulebor said since it is the national chairman that swears in state chairmen, the issue that arose in Port Harcourt that led to the failed convention made null and void every swearing in made in any branch of the party.

“There was an issue that came up at the zonal convention. The convention could not hold, meaning that there was no right for anyone to swear in anybody as chairman because of the failure of the convention in Port Harcourt. The only person who has right to swear in anybody is Ali Modu Sheriff, therefore any swearing in done outside Sheriff is invalid,” Ulebor explained.

But defending his boss, Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Charles Aniagwu, descried the allegation that Okowa sent thugs to disrupt the Sheriff meeting as laughable and frivolous.

He said: “We are too big to involve in those things, we are too busy with governance and how to improve the lots of Delta and Deltans, to get involved in such trivial things, and in any case, it is an unfounded and frivolous allegation.”

Source: Legit.ng