If the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff, returns to office on May 21, former Ministers, who served under the Goodluck Jonathan administration, have threatened to leave the opposition party.
Punch Newspapers reports that some of the ministers have declared that they would not remain in the party after the said date, if it is still led by the former governor of Borno State.
The former ministers were said to have met in Abuja on Thursday where the activities of the party were reviewed and the forthcoming national convention was extensively discussed.
The preliminary reports from the zoning committee of the party – which is headed by the Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Udom Emmanuel – was also reviewed.
The zoning committee is believed to have zoned the office of Chairman to Sheriff, while still backing him to continue in office in spite of widespread opposition from other party members – especially the former ministers.
Sheriff, sensing the stiff opposition, was said to have appointed some of the former ministers into some of the committees with a view of courting their goodwill.
The meeting held on Thursday was reportedly intense as some of the former ministers felt betrayed by their colleagues and as such, threatened to leave the party if Sheriff was made the chairman.
A former minister present at the meeting was quoted to have said: “It was so funny the way our colleagues were trying to defend the former governor despite the collective decision we took before.”
“Some came to say we should give him the chance and that we should not be seen to be opposing him as a person.”
“But it was gratifying to note that the majority of us have said there and then that we would leave the party for them. Our aprons are not tied to the PDP.”
“We told them that Sheriff had always worked against his party. He worked for former President Olusegun Obasanjo; he worked for the late former President Umaru Ya’Adua; he worked for former President Goodluck Jonathan, who were all in our party.”
“This was when Sheriff was in the opposition. Now, tell me: is there anything to suggest that he won’t work against us in 2019?”
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