PDP Crisis Deepens: Sheriff sacks Edo Exco; Makarfi Committee dismisses action

Power tussle in the Peoples Democratic Party
(PDP) deepened, yesterday, as the Senator Ahmed
Makarfi-led Caretaker Committee dismissed the
suspension of the Edo State Executive Committee
of the party by the Ali Modu Sheriff faction.

The Dan Orbih leadership of the PDP in Edo
echoed the Caretaker Committee’s position.
Sheriff had, early yesterday, announced the
suspension of the Edo PDP exco, replacing it with
a Caretaker Committee.

The bone of contention is the PDP primary
election organised by the Makarfi Caretaker
Committee ahead of the Edo gubernatorial
election last Monday, which produced Pastor
Osagie Ize-Iyamu as the candidate of the PDP.
The Sheriff group, also yesterday, fixed June 29 to
pick the PDP candidate for the September 10 Edo
gubernatorial election.

Meanwhile, about 20 youths, allegedly from
Bayelsa and Delta States, were, yesterday,
arrested by the All Progressives Congress (APC)
youths at Ilogbo in Ikpoba Okahi LGA and Abudu in
Orhionwon LGA after they reportedly invaded the
LGAs to participate in the ongoing voter
registration ahead of the September governorship
poll.

Announcing the sack of the Edo PDP Exco, Sheriff
and a former National Secretary of the party,
Professor Wale Oladipo, said the decision was
taken at the National Working Committee meeting
of the party on June 21.

But in separate statements, the Markafi
Committee and the Edo PDP Exco noted that
Sheriff and members of his NWC had been
removed from office and as such not in a position
to suspend any body.

The statement, signed by the Head of Publicity of
the Caretaker Committee, Prince Dayo Adeyeye,
read:

“The attention of the Care-Taker Committee of the
Peoples’ Democratic Party has been drawn to press
statement issued by Senator Ali Modu Sheriff and
professor Wale Oladipo purporting to suspend the
Edo State Executive Committee of the Party.

“The general public, in particular leadership and
members of the PDP in Edo State are advised to
ignore the statement as it is completely with
neither basis nor authority. Procedures for taking
such far reaching decisions are prescribed in the
constitution of the party, so is the organs so
empowered to take it.

“It is no longer news that the Ali Modu Sheriff led
National Working Committee and indeed all
national officers were removed by the Party’s
Convention, which is the highest decision making
organ of the Party. Senator Sheriff and his cohorts
therefore lack the locus to take any decision on
behalf of the Party”.

Orbih, in his own statement, said: “Sheriff’s action
has shown that he is not a true member of PDP. By
his pronouncements and his actions, he has shown
the whole world that he is not a true member of
PDP”.

And in response to the announcement by Sheriff
and Oladipo to organise another primary to pick
the PDP candidate for the Edo governorship poll,
two persons, including the member representing
Egor/Ikpoba Okhai federal constituency of the state
in the House of Representatives, Mr Ehiozuwa
Agbonayinma, and a former member
representing Edo in the Board of the Niger Delta
Development Commission (NDDC), Mr Matthew
Iduoriyekemwen, have collected nomination
forms.

Briefing journalists, yesterday, Iduoriyekemwen,
who participated in Monday’s primary organised by
the Makarfi Committee, which threw up Ize-Iyamu
as governorship candidate, said though the
exercise was fraudulent, he realized that Sheriff is
the authentic Chairman of the party according to
the court, and decided to contest under that
platform.

While rejecting Ize-Iyamu as the PDP candidate,
Iduoriyekemwen and Agbonayinma pledged their
loyalty to the Sheriff-led PDP.