PDP Ex-ministers reject Sheriff’s three months tenure

Despite the decision by the joint meeting of the Board of Trustees (BoT) of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, the party’s Governors Forum and National Executive Committee, NEC, to give its new National Chairman, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff, a three months tenure atasking him for the organization of the national convention in May, former PDP ministers insisted last night that there was no new reason to make them change their position – that Sheriff must quit immediately.

The ex-ministers also frowned as the threat issued by the national chairman to a former Aviation Minister, Femi Fani-Kayode, who Sheriff said “will not go scot-free”.

Chairman of the forum, Taminu Turaki, said “A threat to one is a threat to all”.

They expressed their reservation after a marathon meeting in Abuja on Tuesday, insisting that their position remained unchanged.

Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Turaki said the process that produced the chairman lacked legitimacy and transparency. He also asked that the national convention of the party be held before the end of March.

According to the former ministers, who said their opposition to Sheriff was based on commonsense, it was shocking that the chairman of the party’s BoT was involved in endorsing Sheriff, adding that there was no meeting of the BoT where the decision was taken.

Read also: PDP govs, BoT task Sheriff on national convention

“We stand by the position of the BoT to endorse Sheriff but we still feel the same way we feel. There is a window for dialogue with other organs of the party. But for now, we maintain our position.

“If and when we see reason to accept the decision, we should be presented with fresh reasons why the decision was taken. Our position is guided by convention, the party constitution and the Nigerian constitution”.

It would be recalled that the PDP BoT, the Governors Forum and NEC, after an enlarged meeting on Tuesday, gave Sheriff a three months tenure and tasked him with the organization of the party’s national convention in May where new officers would be elected.

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