Tukur: I remain PDP chairman … debunks resignation rumour

The Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Bamanga Tukur has said he remains the chairman of the largest in Africa, as he debunks his rumoured resignation.
He said this at after some leaders of the party met President Goodluck Jonathan behind closed door at the Presidential Villa at 4 p.m.

Tukur said Tuesday’s meeting was to regularise the PDP family following Independent Electoral Commission’s (INEC) observation that some of the members of the National Working Committee (NWC) were not properly elected.

The INEC had observed that the election of the affected officials did not follow due process.

The PDP National Chairman said those that were not properly  elected will resign and go for an election so as to have opportunity to be regularised.

Tukur said about eight people were affected while three people were not affected. Those not affected are the National Chairman, National Financial Secretary and the National Auditor.

Those affected include the eight people which he did not name and all the deputies and ex-officio among others. The office of National Secretary is right now vacant and so will be contested for.

Fielding questions from State House correspondents, Tukur said, “the meeting is about regularising the family of PDP because there was INEC observation, some of the members of NWC were not properly elected. So it has to be regularise.

“Those who have not been elected will resign and they will go back they will have opportunity to regularise.

“About eight people are affected, they are three people not affected. National Chairman is not affected, National Financial Secretary is not affected, National Auditor is not affected and of course National Secretary which is vacant now.

“The other eight people – all the deputies and ex-officios and the rest of them whose elections in the convention were not voted for”.

On if he was going to resign he said, “It is not true that I am resigning, resign for what? It is not true at all.

“We are here to run the PDP and we have done so and we will continue to run the PDP”.

Asked when elections will hold he said, “we are going to have our caucus tonight, we are going to have Board of Trustee (BOT) meeting tomorrow, we are going to have our NEC on Thursday”.
On the report that the President has asked him to resign Tukur said, “it is not true. Chairman is there daram daram! The chairman is not only in office he is in power, in PDP there is no vacancy in the national chairmanship”.