Chairman of the National Caretaker Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Ahmed Makarfi, has accused the former National Chairman of the party, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff, of trying to recreate Boko Haram in Abuja.
This is as the struggle over the control of the party’s secretariat by supporters of the two claimants, on Thursday, left at least one person with a broken head.
Makarfi who spoke at the end of a meeting between his committee, the Board of Trustees (BoT) and PDP governors on Thursday morning, said the party elders reviewed all that have been going on in the party since Monday.
“You are all witnesses to the thuggery that took place.Actually, those who remembered how Boko Haram was born, that is how it started. How thugs were brought into Abuja and some people forced themselves into the secretariat, in the process documents and some property belonging to be party cannot be accounted for. This cannot be without some supports from some quarters, definitely not from PDP,” he said.
He recalled that he heard Sheriff saying that he was going to go beyond Inspector General Police in order for him to gain access into the PDP secretariat, adding “We don’t know what he means beyond the IG but all of you are sensible enough to decide who is ‘beyond IG could actually mean’”.
The former Kaduna State governor disclosed that the meeting deliberated on the issue and have taken a position to stand by democracy.
He called on security agencies to maintain peace and order in the country and to bring any illegal action of politicians, not matter how highly placed, to book.
“And those elements that may be interfering in our internal affairs, whether they belong to any particular party or they do not belong to any at all, they should allow us to be, as we are not interfering in any other body’s affairs.
“We have it on record that the former Chairman, Sheriff, a day or two before he forced himself into the secretariat had a meeting with one of the governors with the party in power and then the next day this event took place, therefore creating suspicion.
“If he claimed to be chairman of PDP, what meeting could he have had with the governor? Did he get any encouragement, facilitation, any guarantee for him to go ahead and do what he did?This is for Nigerians to think on and take a position on.
“But we are confident that at the end of the day justice will be done. We are confident that all the issues before the judiciary that justice will be done.”
Ekiti State governor, Mr. Ayodele Fayose expressed confidence that what is happening in the party would soon be over.
Fayose noted that Nigeria needs a virile opposition party, adding that any attempt to destroy opposition in Nigeria is not going to be in the interest of democracy.
“We stand as a party to condemned interference, scuttle and strategic effort to destroy PDP in Nigeria.
“We want to make it very clear that international community, well meaning Nigerians must take note that the party PDP, we are prepared to give credible opposition to government in power, that have so far achieve nothing in the space of one year of assumption,” the governor said.
