PDP Announces Date For National Convention

The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has fixed its non-elective national convention for Aug. 12, in Abuja.

The National Publicity Secretary of PDP National Caretaker Committee, Dayo Adeyeye, made the announcement after the National Executive Committee meeting held on Tuesday in Abuja.

Adeyeye said the decision was in line with the directive by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on national conventions of political parties in the country.

The PDP National Caretaker Committee which was set up in Port Harcourt on May 21, 2016, were unable to elect new leaders at its August 17, 2016 non-elective convention due to litigations.

“We have been in court since May 2016. So, the prolonged litigation of the national leadership tussle ended only last week on July 1, when the Supreme Court gave judgement in favour of the National Caretaker Committee.

“This left barely one month for the conduct of proper elective national convention.

“Considering the relevant statutory notice that we need to give to INEC and the requirements of the PDP Constitution 2012 (as amended)’’ it would be difficult to meet deadline,’’ Adeyeye said.

He explained that the party needed to give certain statutory notices to INEC before conducting an elective national convention, which he says has to be after August 16.

“And our own (constitution) has some special provisions that we have to meet and there’s no time to meet up with those provisions.

“Therefore, NEC took a decision that in view of all the circumstances, NEC invoking the powers conferred on it under Section 31 (2a), decided to convene non-elective national convention on Aug. 12 in Abuja.’’

He said the NEC dissolved the party’s caretaker committees in Jigawa and Benue states, set up by the former Chairman of PDP, Ali Modu Sheriff, and also nullified all state caretaker committees and state parallel executives set up after the Court of Appeal judgment of Feb. 17 in Port Harcourt.

“You will recall that immediately after the Court of Appeal judgment on the 17th of February and March in Port Harcourt, which gave our victory to Sheriff, he went about installing caretaker committees in some, states, particularly in Jigawa and Benue States.

“The Ali Modu-Sheriff group then in authority set up caretaker committees in both Jigawa and Benue states and tinkered with the executives of some other states.

“So, we brought a motion before NEC today and the motion was duly passed; that is bringing normalcy back to the party, installing legality and constitutionality.’’

Adeyeye said NEC also set up standing disciplinary and reconciliation committees, not targeted at Sheriff but to settle disciplinary issues in the party.

He added that the National Caretaker Committee had been directed to inaugurate the committees immediately.