A group of five men branded as the Fresh PDP has taken an office in Abuja as headquarters of a splinter within the opposition party.
Prince Obi Nwosu, Alhaji Hassan Adamu, Chief Olusola Akindele, Chief Godwin Duru and Franklyne Edede launched the parallel party in Abuja Wednesday.
The self-appointed leader of the five-man faction, Nwosu, said that members of the National Working Committee of his group would be announced in January.
According to him, the “Fresh PDP”, comprising party stakeholders and losers in the Dec 9 convention, emerged because of the imposition of a unity list on members on December 9, 2017.”
The breakaway group said it is dissatisfied with the outcome of the national convention which produced the new national officers of the party.
One of the losers, Prof. Tunde Adeniran, has, however, disowned the group.
His Director of Campaign Shehu Garban in Abuja said that anybody who had genuine grievances was free to express them. But he cautioned that his principal should not be linked to the group.
“We do not know them. They don’t represent us and we have nothing to do with them. Whenever is there doesn’t represent us,” he added.
Others like Bode George, Rasheed Ladoja, Raymond Dokpesi, Timi Agbaje are yet to speak officially on the group claiming it represent these and other stalwarts aggrieved by the conduct of the convention.
Ekiti Governpr Ayo Fayose and National Chairman of the PDP Uche Secondus have condemned the development, saying the five should have been jailed for a breach of the peace.
Secondus came visiting alongside other members of the party’s National Working Committee for the local government election rally coming up in Ado Ekiti on Thursday (today).
According to a press statement by Fayose’s Chief Press Secretary Idowu Adelusi, the fPDP are simply charlatans, and the party has started investigations to know those behind them.
“In a society like Nigeria, where we need a virile opposition, we need to continually put the government of the day on its toes for them to know that Nigeria is greater than all of us, some miscreants would just issue press statement and say they are a splinter group or whatever they call themselves.
“I urge Nigerians to ignore them. When I saw them on the Internet, they were faceless people I could not recognise, so they remain a set of jobless people and miscreants.”
The national leadership of the PDP has also said the party is not surprised by the “comical act of some individuals who make outlandish claims in the media regarding the party.”