Former members of the Peoples Democratic Party known as New PDP have alleged marginalization by other blocks that formed the All Progressives Congress, and have given the ruling party a 7-day ultimatum to redress the problem.
In a letter to the National Chairman of the APC, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, titled: Request For Redressing Of Grievances Of The Former New PDP Block Within The All Progressives Congress (APC), said with elections around the corner, issues of marginalization need to be addressed.
In the petition signed by Alhaji Abubakar Kawu Baraje, former National Chairman, nPDP, and Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, former National Secretary, nPDP, they claimed that the nPDP block has been sidelined from all appointments.
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“In the constitution of the Federal Executive Council, (FEC) the New PDP block was generally sidelined as virtually no position was conceded to it. The only member of FEC that belonged to former New PDP block comes from a State that contributed virtually no vote to the APC in the 2015 presidential elections.
“There has been no significant patronage and appointments to executive positions in various government agencies such as Chief Executives and Executive Directors of government agencies and parastatals as members of our block of the party continue to helplessly watch as these positions are shared by the erstwhile CPC, ACN, ANPP and even APGA blocks of the party and those who have no party at all.”
They further alleged that ‘when members of the former New PDP block showed interest in running for the offices of President of the Senate and Speaker of the House of Representatives, they were subjected to a vicious and relentless political opposition as if they were not legitimate members of the APC family.
“During the party primaries preparatory to the 2015 General Elections, most of the promises made to sitting members of the National Assembly, who belonged to the former new PDP in terms of a level playing field were reneged upon or observed more in breach.
“There has been general lack of consultation, non-recognition and even persecution of former New PDP members and leaders by the party and government. For example, some of our leaders are denied the security cover necessary to visit their constituencies even though they are elected representatives of the people in a government they sacrificed so much for.”
According to them, “harassment, intimidation and persecution of former New PDP leaders by the government, is still an ongoing affair. We do not want to overstate the obvious by cataloguing names of former new PDP stalwarts that are targets of this political pogrom.”
They warned that “our belief is that it does not augur well for our party if a section of it feels that it is being treated as outcasts and meddlesome interlopers in the party they rightly belong with the legitimate expectation to be treated with justice both in the running of the party and the government.”
They called on the APC executive to within seven days call a meeting to resolve all the issues as the party prepares for the 2019 poll.