My next line of action as national chairman of PDP - Modu Sheriff
A detachment of
policemen this afternoon barricaded the entrance to the international
conference centre, venue of the meeting scheduled by the Ahmed Makarfi
led National Caretaker committee of the Peoples Democratic Party for an
enlarged meeting of it’s members to deliberate on the outcome of the
Portharcourt Appeal court which upheld the leadership of Ali Modu
Sheriff as the chairman of the party.
Police hilux vehicles barricaded the main entrance tp prevent access by
the Mekarfi Faction of the Peoples Democratic Party into the premises of
the International Conference Centre, Abuja. Photo by Abayomi Adeshida
20/02/2017
Though the meeting was supposed to hold at 2pm today, a detachment of
police men in about four patrol vans stormed the venue and barricaded
the venue as early as 11am with two patrol vans.
Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2017/02/breaking-police-stops-makarfis-pdp-faction-meeting/
Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2017/02/breaking-police-stops-makarfis-pdp-faction-meeting/
Ali Modu Sheriff says if he is a mole as claimed by Governor Nyesom Wike, then the latter should be held responsible for allowing him run the party affairs
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The former governor of Borno state says he is no longer interested in
being the chairman of the PDP, but that he wants to put the right things
in place before leaving
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He also speaks on Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti state and responds
to calls that he should leave the seat of the chairman of the party
Ali
Modu Sheriff, who was recently affirmed as the authentic national
chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) by an appeal court in
Port Harcourt, Rivers state, was at the Channels Television on Sunday,
February 19, where he spoke on various issues concerning the leadership
crisis in the party as well as allegation of being a mole of the ruling
All Progressives Congress (APC). Eromosele Ebhomele monitored the interview and produces excerpts:
Modu Sheriff says he was practically begged to take over the chairmanship of the PDP
There
is something called legitimacy. If the governors and former ministers
say they do not want you, don't you think it would just be nice to take a
bow and leave?
If you
understand the organs of the party, there is nothing like the Former
Ministers Forum. It is not the Forum that brought me to the level of
becoming a national chairman. I became the national chairman through a
due process, where the NEC of the party met. There are four other people
who wanted to be the chairman at that time. It was put to vote and I
got about 69 votes. The next person to me got only nine. I would have
wished the Former Ministers Forum would make a statement and let all the
ministers in Nigeria sit together and decide.
Or
like the case of Governor Ayo Fayose who said he is speaking on behalf
of the (PDP) Governors' Forum; for sure, I have spoken to a lot of
governors in the party and all of them are thinking of how we can build
the party and have a credible convention. So I don't want to join issues
with Fayose and his statements, but what I want to assure Nigerians is
that this party will come back. This party will be in the position of
1999 and we are making consultations all over Nigeria putting everybody
together so that we can do a convention and elect leaders who can run
the party.
The Ahmed Makarfi
faction is believed to be planning an injunction to stop you from
parading yourself as the chairman of the party. Are you also aware of
the meeting of the NEC and other stakeholders scheduled for Monday,
February 20?
I have not, as the national
chairman, called for any meeting. Also, I am making consultations. A
group of people have right to meet, but as PDP, we have not called for
meeting. The thing is we will call for meeting after we finish with the
consultation we are making. I have said there is no sacrifice too much
to make for the PDP. And this PDP is the party for all Nigerians. It
does not belong to Ali Sheriff or any governor. Neither does it belong
to any minister. Therefore, it is wrong for me or anybody to sit down
and assume the authority of having the party for himself.
I
want to believe that at my level, I don't think it will be right for me
to make statements that cannot be justified in anyway because parties
have constitutions; they run with rules and laws. All along that we were
in court, if you watch carefully, I always acted within the rule of
law. Therefore, if Makarfi wanted to take the laws into his hands, I
will not be part of those that will do it. And I don't intend to join
issues with him ever.
You have
talked about consultations and that some heavyweights have been writing
to you. Who are those with you? Are there any governors or members of
the BoT with you?
Let me tell
you clearly that as of today, since the announcement of this court
judgement, I have spoken to more than seven governors, I have spoken to a
lot of the BoT members, I have spoken to a lot of former governors.
Their views and mine are all the same. I have told everybody that all I
am interested in is to do a convention. When we agree on a time frame, I
will consult the National Assembly and others and we will do the
convention.
I don't want us to start
destroying our party on the pages of newspapers or the media. When they
invited me to come and lead the party, I took it with all good
intentions. Therefore, if along the line there are misunderstanding here
and there, the best way is to resolve the issues amicably; it is not on
the television we would come and exchange words.
Modu Sheriff confirmed that he met with Ibrahim Babangida on Sunday, February 19
You said you're willing to make sacrifices, but how much sacrifice are you willing to make? Can you step down for peace?
In party leaderships, you have to
conduct a congress. When I say I am ready to make sacrifices, I don't
intend to run the tenure that was prescribed for me at all. Since there
are arguments, the best way is to resolve them amicably. I heard when
you asked Wike a question relating to a statement attributed to me. I
have not made any statement except one. I have no issue to join with
Wike or Fayose and have never said I will deal with them. I was a
governor; both of them are governors of their states. I know the writers
(of that statement) and they are the same people who are causing this
trouble but I don't want to join issues with them. I did not make the
statement.
One of the
allegations from Wike is that you are a mole in the PDP and you don't
have the interest of the party at heart. It is believed you are being
used by the APC to destabilise the PDP. One will wonder, why are you
doing that?
You
should have asked him if it was the PDP that sent him to come and ask
me to lead the party. He was among the people who invited me. So if I am
a mole, he was the one that made the provision for me to be a mole in
the PDP, because I remember very well that Wike was on the front-burner
for me to be the chairman of the PDP. So where does the issue of mole
come since I didn't bring myself?
Wike says one of the biggest political mistakes he has ever made is approaching you...
If
he said that, it means he knows I am not a mole. Probably, he invited
me thinking I will take instructions from him to run the party. At my
level, I have my mind. I looked at the Nigerian people and the party and
accepted to lead the party. I want to tell you clearly that I have
nothing to do with the APC because it was not the APC that came to beg
me, it was him and some of his colleagues that came to beg me to lead
the PDP.
I was really taken aback by some of the statements I heard from Wike.
Now that the appeal court has affirmed you as the chairman, what is your immediate next step?
The next step for me is to move
to the party office. The second is to make zonal consultations and try
to make sure we agree on a timetable for a quick convention that will
produce leaders of the party acceptable to everybody. I am not
interested in leading the party any longer, but since the responsibility
was put on me to lead the party, I must make sure it goes through a
convention and ensure the right things are done. I don't have any other
agenda rather than to make sure I conduct a convention.
Should you lose at the Supreme Court right now, what would you do?
Even
this judgement that has come from the Court of Appeal, I actually left
the justices of the court to decide who is right and who is wrong. I
have never said to anybody that I have an iota of information of what
would happen tomorrow. It is not like when Wike said he was going to win
at the Supreme Court when the tribunal and the Court of Appeal
nullified his election. He is telling Nigerians that he has the control
of the Supreme Court, but I don't believe so. The Supreme Court is the
highest court of the land and will make pronouncements based on the
facts before it. And I believe that the Supreme Court will make
pronouncements based on what they have seen from the Court of Appeal
being the second highest court in the land.
I want to tell you that I am law-abiding citizen.
Have
you spoken with former President Goodluck Jonathan since the judgement?
What is your relationship with the Prof Jerry Gaba committee?
I
want to tell you I have not spoken to President Jonathan yet. When this
judgement was passed, I was not even around. I plan to speak with
President Jonathan probably tomorrow (today, Monday 20), but the vice
president, Namadi Sambo, has called me to speak with me. I have met with
General Babangida. I have spoken to a lot of leaders with the view to
finding a lasting solution to our party's problem.
I
am not afraid of any litigation. The justices of the appeal court have
made pronouncements and by the grace of God, other justices would also
look at the merit of the case and make judgement.
A detachment of
policemen this afternoon barricaded the entrance to the international
conference centre, venue of the meeting scheduled by the Ahmed Makarfi
led National Caretaker committee of the Peoples Democratic Party for an
enlarged meeting of it’s members to deliberate on the outcome of the
Portharcourt Appeal court which upheld the leadership of Ali Modu
Sheriff as the chairman of the party.
Police hilux vehicles barricaded the main entrance tp prevent access by
the Mekarfi Faction of the Peoples Democratic Party into the premises of
the International Conference Centre, Abuja. Photo by Abayomi Adeshida
20/02/2017
Though the meeting was supposed to hold at 2pm today, a detachment of
police men in about four patrol vans stormed the venue and barricaded
the venue as early as 11am with two patrol vans.
Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2017/02/breaking-police-stops-makarfis-pdp-faction-meeting/
Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2017/02/breaking-police-stops-makarfis-pdp-faction-meeting/
A detachment of
policemen this afternoon barricaded the entrance to the international
conference centre, venue of the meeting scheduled by the Ahmed Makarfi
led National Caretaker committee of the Peoples Democratic Party for an
enlarged meeting of it’s members to deliberate on the outcome of the
Portharcourt Appeal court which upheld the leadership of Ali Modu
Sheriff as the chairman of the party.
Police hilux vehicles barricaded the main entrance tp prevent access by
the Mekarfi Faction of the Peoples Democratic Party into the premises of
the International Conference Centre, Abuja. Photo by Abayomi Adeshida
20/02/2017
Though the meeting was supposed to hold at 2pm today, a detachment of
police men in about four patrol vans stormed the venue and barricaded
the venue as early as 11am with two patrol vans.
Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2017/02/breaking-police-stops-makarfis-pdp-faction-meeting/
Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2017/02/breaking-police-stops-makarfis-pdp-faction-meeting/
A detachment of
policemen this afternoon barricaded the entrance to the international
conference centre, venue of the meeting scheduled by the Ahmed Makarfi
led National Caretaker committee of the Peoples Democratic Party for an
enlarged meeting of it’s members to deliberate on the outcome of the
Portharcourt Appeal court which upheld the leadership of Ali Modu
Sheriff as the chairman of the party.
Police hilux vehicles barricaded the main entrance tp prevent access by
the Mekarfi Faction of the Peoples Democratic Party into the premises of
the International Conference Centre, Abuja. Photo by Abayomi Adeshida
20/02/2017
Though the meeting was supposed to hold at 2pm today, a detachment of
police men in about four patrol vans stormed the venue and barricaded
the venue as early as 11am with two patrol vans.
Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2017/02/breaking-police-stops-makarfis-pdp-faction-meeting/
Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2017/02/breaking-police-stops-makarfis-pdp-faction-meeting/
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