Leadership / Nigeria: The leadership tussle the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) resumed on Tuesday as Senators, Ahmed Makarfi and Ali Modu Sheriff-led camps threatened each other with jail terms over the lingering national chairmanship tussle of the party.
Spokesman of the Makarfi’s National Caretaker Committee, Prince Dayo Adeyeye, said Sheriff has not appealed court judgements which sacked him from office.
While he added that the National Caretaker Committee has not called for the expulsion of Sheriff and his followers yet, but “that the rain of vengeance will not hang forever in the clouds.”
But in a reaction, deputy national chairman in Sheriff’s PDP, Dr Cairo Ojougboh said, it is the caretaker committee that faces jail term, adding that they evaded efforts to serve them with court papers issued by the Federal High Court.
However Adeyeye in his statement said “First and foremost, we wish to state categorically that in consonance with Judgement of various Courts, which Ali Modu-Sheriff and his team of confused travellers have not bothered to appeal, the former Borno State Governor is not the Chairman of our Party, the PDP.
“His consistent claim to the office is a continuation of the their plans to sustain mayhem in our Party, but nature and fair justice have taken care of his desperation.
“We wish to draw the attention of all Nigerians to the Judgement delivered by Justice Valentine Ashi of the FCT High Court, which states clearly that Senator Ali Modu-Sheriff was never and is not the PDP National Chairman.
“It is instructive to note that Senator Modu-Sheriff and his team of circus performers have not deemed it fit to appeal the Court Judgements. It is tripartite (sic) in law that a Judgment not appeal is binding on the defendant.
“The Courts have spoken, and their pronouncements are binding. However, those who wish to spend the rest of their lives behind prison bars may continue to utter heresy against the Court. We hope their children would be proud to bear the family names of convicts.”
Adeyeye further said it was morally wrong for Sheriff to accuse the National Caretaker Committee of being the reason why the Party is facing challenges in terms of unfavourable election results especially in Edo and Ondo States.
However, Ojougboh while reacting to Adeyeye’s statement said “It is the caretaker committee that is actually playing with jail term because there is a form 48 and 49 already issued against them from the Federal High Court that is waiting for them. The effort to serve and arrest them was aborted because they evaded the law.
“Justice Mohammed J of Abuja High Court ruled that the tenure of NWC expired in 2018 and therefore, Sheriff remain the only and authentic National Chairman.
“The judgement Adeyeye and co. is talking about has nothing to do with Sheriff.”
