PDP Convention: Lamido threatens legal action over chairmanship nomination form
PDP Convention: Lamido threatens legal action over chairmanship nomination form
By Ndukaku Ihe
Former Jigawa State governor, Sule Lamido, has threatened to take a legal action against the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) if the party fails to sell nomination form for the national chairmanship position to him.
Lamido, while addressing journalists, at the Wadata Plaza, on Monday, said he was at the party secretariat to obtain nomination form for opposition party’s National Convention scheduled for November 15 and 16, but was told the form was not available at the secretariat.
This is as the former Minister of Special Duties, Tanimu Turaki has submitted his nomination form for the PDP national chairmanship contest, with a promise to reconcile all interest groups in the opposition party if elected national chairman.
The Jigawa governor explained that on arrival at the PDP secretariat, he proceeded to the office of the National Organizing Secretary, Umar Bature, but it was locked.
Lamido regretted that when he eventually saw Bature at the office of the National Secretary, Samuel Anyanwu, both of them said they had no idea where the form is being sold.
He said: “I went to the office of the National Organizing Secretary, which is normally the office where the forms are sold, and the office was locked. I think it was officially locked, you know, because of his own position. So, I met him with the Secretary of the Party, Senator Samuel Anyanwu. I said, ‘look, I am here to buy the form.’
“Both of them said they had no idea where the forms are, not even how they were printed or the kind of forms they are. They had no idea where they were being sold.
They said, ‘look, we have no idea what is happening about the party nomination, sales of the form, or even how they are printed, or the kind of forms.’ So, I am now stranded.
“So, I found it a little bit weird that the custodian of the system, who is the National Organising Secretary, is also being locked out because I am coming in. So, they may not be able to go into the office.”
Lamido, who added that he was told that the chairman of the National Convention Organizing Committee (NCOC), Governor Ahmadu Fintiri, was in custody of the nomination forms, queried if he should go to Adamawa to obtain the form.
The former governor, while responding to his likely next line of action, in the event that he does not get the nomination form, said ” if I don’t get the form, I will go to court. Simple.”
Lamido’s stance is a new twist in the controversy trailing next month’s National Convention of the major opposition party.
The PDP National convention where a new set of National Working Committee (NWC) members that will pilot the affairs of the party for the next four years, beginning from December 8, has been a bone of contention among interest groups in the party.
Recently, the chairman of the Imo State chapter of the opposition party, Austin Nwachukwu, his Abia State counterpart, Abraham Nnanna, and George Turnah, recently filled a suit at the Federal High Court, Abuja seeking to halt plans for the convention, pending the determination of the substantive suit.
Also, Anyanwu, has petitioned security agencies and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) alleging that his signature in the correspondence to the electoral body on the National Convention was allegedly forged.
Nonetheless, both the PDP national publicity secretary, Debo Ologunagba and the chairman of the party’s Board of Trustees (BoT) have dismissed the allegation as misleading.
Last week, PDP stakeholders in the North, after a meeting in Abuja, announced Turaki as their consensus candidate for the national chairmanship, which was micro-zoned to the North West.
Meanwhile, a member of PDP in Kaduna State, Umar Sani, while addressing journalists, at the Legacy House, Abuja, on behalf of the former minister’s team, said Turaki will ensure reconciliation in the party if elected as national chairman.
Sani, while responding to question on whether the former minister was afraid of a contest, said the latter was not and has remained steadfast in his loyalty to the opposition party.
According to him,” Kabiru Tanimu Turaki is not afraid of anybody. He has not changed from the PDP. He knows the internal workings of the PDP. So, for anybody to believe that he is afraid of anybody, he is not afraid of anybody.
“Secondly, Kabiru Tanimu Turaki has been in this party for a very long time. He has never aspired to become a House of Reps member, a Senator, a Governor, only that he aspired to become President. And even the aspiration to become President, when he was defeated at the primaries in Port Harcourt, he became the Director of Administration and Finance of the Presidential Campaign Council, where I was a Presidential Campaign Council Spokesperson.
“So, he is very much aware that he has a responsibility. He has never ran away from the party. He has never said that he would never attend any party meeting until somebody is removed. He has always been in the party. And he has always provided his contributions where needed, both legal, financial, and otherwise.”
He added: “Now, if he is vested with the powers to continue to run the affairs of the party, he will put the party on a sound footing because he is neutral. He is neither with Wike nor the Governor’s Forum.
“He is an independent-minded person, and we hope that he will bring his wealth of experience, which he has gathered over the years, both as a legal practitioner, as a former Minister of Special Duties, because as a Special Duties Minister, you have to specialize in everything.
“Kabiru Tanimu Turaki is not a troublemaker. He likes peace all the time. And he has always considered Sule Lamido as his senior brother and he calls him as such.
“So, they don’t have any problem. This is a party matter, not an individual quarrel between Kabiru Tanimu Turaki and Sule Lamido. There is no quarrel at all.”
