Politics

Sheriff’s 2019 presidential ambition deepens PDP crisis

Published

7 years ago

March 21, 2017

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Clear indications are emerging that the presidential ambition of Ali Modu Sherriff has been increasing the tempo of the conflict ravaging the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). At the time the PDP Governors appointed Sherriff acting chairman of the party in the storm of the leadership crises that trailed the removal of Adamu Mua’zu as national chairman after the 2015 general elections, little did the governors know the undeclared ambition of Sherriff for the 2019 presidential race. At the discovery of the hidden ambition, the PDP Governors set out for the removal of Sherriff which led to the complication of the protracted conflicts in the party.

The Caretaker Committee headed by Ahmed Makarfi has not known peace since its inauguration in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, where Sherriff executive council was dissolved.

Sherriff has fought the PDP to the point that the Court of Appeal declared him the substantive PDP Chairman. However, it is manifestly obvious that the soul of PDP, including the structures and political machine of the party, are with Makarfi caretaker Committee. Invariably, Sherriff enjoys the legal power to the office of the PDP chairman but all the paraphernalia of the party are under firm control of Makarfi and the Caretaker Committee.

After the ruling of the Appeal Court, Sherriff resolved to conduct PDP National Convention to elect new party leaders. Other PDP leaders, including Governor Ayo Fayose of Ekiti State, who is Chairman of the PDP Governors Forum, have remained skeptical about Sherriff’s leadership of the party. Though, Sherriff has declared that he will not contest the PDP national chairman, the skepticism of PDP stakeholders on the side of Makarfi, however, was exacerbated by the insinuations of Sherriff’s 2019 presidential ambition.

Apparently, Sherriff is being suspected of a plot install his stooges as PDP chairman and other offices of the National Working Committee (NWC) that will conduct the party primaries for PDP tickets in 2019. Hence, the renewed scuffle over the conduct of PDP’s convention by Sherriff.

Meanwhile, Sherriff came up with a political simulation about his presidential ambition in 2019 during a press conference in Abuja. In a swift disguise, Sherriff expressed he commits his political future to God, Who he said decides every political position he occupies in politics, emphasizing he cannot, on his own, decide his presidential ambition in 2019. He repeatedly acknowledged that PDP has zoned the presidential ticket to the North; as a matter of fact, this gives Sherriff open opportunity to get the PDP presidential ticket through his way.

In an interactive session with journalists in Abuja, Sherriff reiterated that he has given PDP members the assurance that he would not contest for the party’s chairmanship position but was not emphatic on the 2019 presidential ticket.

“Every position I have occupied in life, God made it possible. I’m a firm believer in the will of God. I told you I would not run for the position of the chairman; the rest, I left for God to decide.”

Sheriff also acknowledged that the PDP national chairman has been zoned to the South and would thus, remain in the southern part of the country, adding that the party in the zone would determine which of the three zones would take the slot.

“I don’t know whether the office of the chairman will go to the South West, but I know it will remain with the southern region. This is because the presidential ticket will go to the North. I also don’t know the area or the zone that will pick the ticket from the three zones within the region,” Sheriff had stated.

Meanwhile, Governor Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa State who headed the PDP Reconciliation Committee, summited the Committee’s report to Sherriff for implementation even when Sherriff did not set up the committee. Dickson, in the report, suggested that Makarfi should resign as PDP interim chairman or head of the National Caretaker Committee.

Makarfi has, however, vowed he will resign as recommended by the Dickson committee. The Caretaker Committee Chairman had insisted that only PDP’s convention can make him to resign.