Apologise for suspending me or face lawsuit, Fayose gives PDP 72-hr ultimatum

Former Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, has threatened to take his party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), to court, if it fails to apologise for suspending him within 72 hours.

Ripples Nigeria reported, on March 24, that the National Working Committee (NWC) of the PDP suspended Fayose over alleged involvement in anti-party activities.

However, yesterday, the NWC of the PDP reversed his suspension, including other party members who were slammed with similar accusations.

In a letter dated March 31 and addressed to the PDP, acting National Chairman, Iliya Damagum, Fayose’s lawyer, Akinwale Kol-Taiwo, alleged that his client was suspended for no reason.

Kol-Taiwo, who maintained that the suspension was both libellous and defamatory, added that the party must not fail to issue an apology to Fayose within 72 hours of receiving the letter, lest he would take legal action.

The statement read: “We are further informed by our client that by the letter dated 24th March 2023, the reversal of our client’s suspension from Peoples Democratic Party which was done without recourse to laid down procedure/due process of law as contained in the constitution of the Peoples Democratic Party (as amended in 2017) was requested.

“The Peoples Democratic Party, in retracing its steps and by implication admitting the content of the letter dated 24th March 2023, reversed the suspension of our client by a press release issued on 30th March 2023 through the office of the national publicity secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party.

READ ALSO: PDP lifts suspension of Fayose, Anyim, others

“The aforesaid libellous press release was designed to smear and tarnish the good reputation of our client in the eyes of right-thinking members of the society, as well as to subject our client to odium, ridicule, and public opprobrium in presence of his political associates and the general public.

“While we do not contend that the Peoples Democratic Party reserve the power(s) to take disciplinary action against any erring member(s), it is much more pertinent to state that the said power(s) to take disciplinary action is not absolute, the said power(s) to take disciplinary action is limited to doctrine of fair hearing as enshrined in the Peoples Democratic Party Constitution (as amended in 2017) and the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (1999) as amended. As such, your disciplinary powers must not be seen to infringe on the right of another citizen or person.

“There is no doubt that the action of the national working committee of the Peoples Democratic Party (NWC) in this purported suspension saga acted rashly on baseless and unfounded allegations, thereby making our party — the Peoples Democratic Party — not just look weak, but disorganised.”

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