PDP insists on Secondus as Chairman

The National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has defied a directive by the party's governors, asking the Acting National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus, to hand over to the National Secretary, Prof. Wale Oladipo.

The governors, in a communiqué issued at the end of a meeting in Abuja Wednesday night, had ordered Secondus to hand over to Oladipo pending the emergence of a substantive chairman to be picked from the Northeast zone.

But the party in a statement issued on Thursday by its National Legal Adviser, Mr. Victor Kwom, insisted that Secondus remains the Acting Chairman.

The statement said, 'The NWC of the PDP wishes to assure all members of the party nationwide that there has not been any change whatsoever in the leadership composition of the party at the national level.

'For the avoidance of doubt, the statutory organs of the party, the NWC, National Caucus, BoT and NEC will be meeting next week to deliberate on some developments including the replacement, from the North East of Alhaji Adamu Mu'azu, who resigned as the National Chairman of the party.'

The statement added that replacement will be in strict adherence to the provisions of the party's constitution, as specified in section 47(6).

'Until then, the status quo remains, which means the Deputy National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus, remains as the Acting National Chairman.

'Furthermore, it must be reiterated that all relevant stakeholders of our party, including the PDP Governor's Forum, National Caucus and the Board of Trustees (BoT) as well as our leadership structures at all levels are united behind the current National Working Committee in the efforts to rebuild, reposition and strengthen our party for the challenges ahead,' the statement added. – The Nation.