Ondo guber: PDP will resist imposition of candidate under any guise – Makarfi

The national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Caretaker Committee, Senator Ahmed Mohammed Makarfi, has said that the opposition will resist any plan to impose any candidate on the PDP in the forthcoming Ondo State governorship election.

He averred that the crisis orchestrated in PDP is a calculated attempt to give the All Progressives Congress (APC) an edge over the PDP at the polls.

Makarfi spoke in Kaduna on Saturday, said that the unfolding scenario as a result of the crisis that emerge from the dispute over the INEC’s approval of the candidature of Chief Jimoh Ibrahim as the PDP Candidate for Ondo governorship election was a clear indication that Senator Ali Modu Sherriff has abandoned the reconciliation move in the party in order to bring the warring factions together.

He accused Sherriff of playing to an alleged grand design by the ruling party, APC to win the forthcoming Governorship in Ondo State,
saying that his caretaker committee will continue to deploy legal and political means to ensure the victory of the rightful PDP candidate in the State.

Makarfi who spoke on how Senator Sheriff has frustrated the peace and reconciliation moves in the PDP said that the opposition party will reorganized itself as a formidable force to be reckoned with in the country within the next six months in order to salvage the nation from the hands of APC.

Expressing dismay on the action of INEC in the preparation for the forthcoming governorship polls in Ondo State, he said: “I don’t know what pressurized INEC to come out with the decision it took”, pointing out that “what I read is that they acted on the orders of a court of law and not on the basis of what they believe is right as umpire and as a body authorized to know the true status of political parties, the true status of the primaries conducted for the nomination of candidates”.

“I want you to recall that we gave INEC relevant notices as stipulated by law, they observed our primaries and they took our nomination. It was reported that the other side did primaries at midnight in Ibadan.

I“t was not covered by INEC or any authority for that matter. So, if a court of law gives INEC some orders that INEC, for whatever reason felt compelled at that time to comply with. It is unfortunate, that no even such court of law in the first instance should give such an order”.

“They are ignoring all the other laws relating to regulations and how candidates should emerge. Be that as it may, it has been our principles not to personalize issues. Because our judicial system provides for appeal process and we have appealed. And we have absolute confidence that the appellate court should be able before the election date, determines the legitimate candidate of the PDP”.

“And we are still confident that Jegede (SAN) and one properly nominated by our party men and women from Ondo State will be the name to stand for the election as a candidate under the PDP flag for Ondo”.

Senator Makarfi also dwelt on the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed for peace and reconciliation in the PDP by the factions in dispute has been violated by the Sheriff group.

Said he: “Before we signed that MOU and before the leader that convened us, the understanding we reached before him (and people can
ask him, he will attest to that) was that the other side will join the caretaker committee. And that was the basic agreement that was reached. And then, we agreed that we should set up an equal number of party men and women that would sit down look at the modality of integrating the two sides into the caretaker committee and also draw the modality for the withdrawal of all court cases or consensual
settlement of the cases that withdrawal is not the best option but to have a clear legal determination of the matter”.

“But, let it be something that we all consent to so as to prevent future litigation. Because some gaps, if you leave them now in the name of peace, somebody else, may not be Modu Sherrif or anybody associated with Modu Sherrif, it can be anybody else, anytime can still go to court asking the same issues to be determined. Now, let us use this and work together to mutually determine all those contentious issues that we commonly agreed to so that we prevent such issues coming up in the future. That is the general understanding”.

He continued: “The committee was to be for twelve from both sides, later it was Ali Modu Sheriff himself thought that we should expand it to 14, 14 because, his thought that some members of the caretaker committee out to have been members of the committee because they know where we are and they can add to the committee in making input. See, from his own committee members, he will also bring two to also join the other people. We said that it was a good idea”.

“Later, I was the one that sent a message that we needed to expand to15, 15. Because, instead of two governors we wanted to include three governors in order to carry everybody along. So, that was how we hit the figure 15, 15. And the issue now became who to chair that committee and the term of reference. On who to chair the committee
there were names that were mentioned”.

“In my opinion, I thought of the person who was able to convene us without dispute should be able to chair the committee. In suggesting any other name you don’t know how it would be received by other people. Of course, I know, Modu Sherrif suggested the former President Goodluck Jonathan. And I said he had wanted to do similar thing before and he was advised against it.”

“And that we shouldn’t be dragged into it, more so, we don’t know how it will end up. If it ends up well fine and good. Supposing it don’t ends up well, you would have succeeded in bringing down his stature as the PDP past immediate President. To say that he is involved in something wish failed later, it wasn’t wise to get him involved in such issues. We actually felt that it will be better that he play an advisory role and not a central role. And so, we didn’t really decide on who to take the position, it was opened for discussion. But, the key issue where we had problem was the issue of term of reference”.