PDP Bows to Pressure, Postpones Special Convention to August 20

 Bamanga Tukur

• Ogun PDP cautions against replacing Oyinlola

The National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has shifted the party’s planned special national convention, earlier slated for July 20 to August 20. The convention has been scheduled to elect national officers of the party.

Also affected by the change of date, which was announced  Thursday, is the South-west zonal convention originally slated for July 11. It has been rescheduled to take place on August 17.

The postponement followed a protest by PDP Northern governors, who complained that July 20 date would not be convenient for delegates, who were Muslims because it coincided with the Ramadan period. The 30-day fasting is expected to start on July 9.

Also, the Ogun State chapter of the party has warned the NWC against declaring vacant the position of the party’s national secretary, occupied by former Osun State Governor, Olagunsoye Oyinlola, who was removed from office based on a court judgment.
The NWC, at a meeting Wednesday, agreed that the dates would be rescheduled for the special and zonal conventions to take place after the fasting period.

THISDAY gathered that after the decision, PDP National Chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, went to the State House to brief President Goodluck Jonathan on the latest development.

The party, in a statement  Thursday, by its acting National Publicity, Tony Okeke, said the special and zonal conventions have been rescheduled.
“The NWC of the PDP hereby announces that the South-west zonal congress and the special national convention of the party have been rescheduled in view of the Muslim Ramadan fast.

“New dates for the south-west zonal congress and the special national convention of the party will take place on August 17 and 20 respectively,” the statement added.
It was also gathered that some of the PDP northern governors over the weekend had faulted the composition of the National Convention Committee, chaired by former Minister of Information, Prof. Jerry Gana.

One of the governors told THISDAY: “We are surprised at the composition of the headship of the Jerry Gana-committee. Gana as the chairman is a Christian; the deputy chairman is Governor Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State. He is also a Christian and the deputy senate president, Ike Ekweremadu, who is the secretary of the convention committee, is a Christian.

“Some of us have made our views known, with the hope that the composition will be addressed.”

However, as the party announced new dates for its special convention and zonal congress, the Chairman and Secretary of PDP in Ogun State, Mr. Adebayo Dayo and Alhaji Semiu Shodipo, respectively have petitioned the national leadership of the party to ensure that the party’s south-west zonal congress does not include finding a replacement for Oyinlola.

The former governor was forced to vacate the post of national secretary of the party because of a Federal High Court judgment, which ruled that the zonal congress that nominated him for the position was illegal.

Oyinlola had earlier in the week asked the Gana committee not to include the office of the national secretary as one of those to be contested at the special convention because it was not vacant.

According to the state PDP, it is wrong for the party to contemplate conducting a zonal congress, with the aim of replacing Oyinlola.

The party said in the petition sent to Gana, a copy of which was given to journalists in Abuja yesterday, that the agenda of the proposed zonal congress would be contrary to the court pronouncement on the matter.

Apart from Gana, others copied in the petition were Akpabio and Ekweremadu; Chairman of the Board of Trustees (BoT) of the party, Chief Tony Anenih and Jonathan.
Also copied were Tukur; Chief of Staff to the President, Chief Mike Oghiadomhe; Chairman, Caretaker Committee of the party in the south-west, Chief Ishola Filani; and the Political Adviser to the President, Mr. Ahmed Gulak.

The petition was written by Mr. Ajibola Oluyede, lawyer to the plaintiffs in suit No. FHC/ABJ/504/2012, in which judgment was delivered by the Federal High Court removing Oyinlola as the national secretary.

The party insisted that the planned July 11 convention in the zone aimed at electing Oyinlola’s replacement must be suspended.

Their letter reads in part: “We are solicitors to the plaintiffs in suit No. FHC/ABJ/504/2012 in which judgment was delivered by the Federal High Court removing Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola as National Secretary of the PDP on January 11, 2013.

“Following the resignation of certain members of the NWC of the PDP on the June 19, 2013, your committee was inaugurated to conduct elections (at a special convention convened for the purpose) into the offices in respect of which those affected officers had resigned.

“This was apparently perceived by leaders of the PDP as a peaceful resolution of a festering discord within the party concerning the position taken by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) about the procedure adopted for the election of some unopposed candidates to the National Executive Committee of the party at its national convention in March 2012.

“However, our attention has been drawn to the advertisements placed concerning the planned special convention and certain statements of some of the party’s elders, which show that there is the erroneous and dangerous belief that the office of national secretary is one of the offices to be filled by election at the planned special convention.”