PDP’ll treat Baraje, Oyinlola, others as criminals – Metuh

The Peoples Democratic Party on Friday warned its aggrieved governors and others in their camp to stop using the name of the party in any form and to also stop using its flag.

The party, which was reacting to the judgement of the Federal High Court, which sat in Abuja on Friday and upheld its leadership under the National Chairmanship of Dr. Bamanga Tukur, rolled out the warning in a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh.

But in a swift reaction, the National Publicity Secretary of the spinster group, New PDP, Chief Chukwuemeka Eze, described the ruling as a temporary relief.

He said the Tukur-led PDP must realise that there were higher courts where he said his faction was ready to take the matter to.

Metuh, however, insisted that the ruling of the court in this regard was absolutely clear, direct and unambiguous, adding that the party has only one duly elected National Executive Committee under the national chairmanship of Tukur.

He said those parading themselves as leaders of a faction of the party would be treated as criminals.

He was making a veiled reference to the parallel executive by members of the New PDP, which has a former National Chairman of the party, Alhaji Kawu Baraje as chairman, a former National Secretary, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola as secretary; former Deputy National Chairman and Dr. Sam Jaja as deputy national chairman.

Governors in the group are Aliyu Wamakko(Sokoto), Sule Lamido(Jigawa), Rotimi Amaechi (Rivers), Aliyu Babangida(Niger), Abdulfatai Ahmed(Kwara ) Murtala Nyako(Adamawa) and Rabiu Kwankwanso(Kano).

Metuh however said, “We wish therefore to state with all emphasis that any group of persons parading themselves as leaders of this organ of our party are impostors and must be treated as criminals by all and sundry.

“Henceforth, the leadership of the PDP will no longer tolerate or condone any meeting, utterances, press statements and/or activities whatsoever under the name, flag and colour of the PDP by any unauthorized person or group(s) under any guise.

“As a law abiding party, the PDP remained calm in the face of the unwarranted attacks of the last few months.”

Metuh said that the PDP under Tukur chose the path of caution and decorum but its reconciliatory moves and offer of olive branch, which he said were treated with the highest disdain and viewed as signs of weakness.

“The National Working Committee has therefore directed that the name, colour, flag and the provisions of constitution of our party must be held sacrosanct by our members,” Metuh warned.

He said the party has adequate internal mechanism for resolution of disagreements and called on its members to express their grievances through such.

He added that the challenges of the last few months instead of detracting the party, had  positioned it to continue to win elections at all levels in the country.

But Eze said, “They think that there are no higher courts in the land? It is just a temporary relief and I can tell you that this case will get to the highest court in the land, which is the Supreme Court.”