Ahead of the National Executive Committee meeting of the Peoples Democratic Party (NEC), a group of 60 PDP federal lawmakers under the aegis of opposition lawmakers coalition have called for the resignation of the PDP acting national chairman, Umar Iliya Damagun, over alleged anti-party activities.
The group also called for removal of Damagun by the NEC of the party with further sanctions against him for his alleged anti-party activities should he fail to resign.
The lawmakers who accused Damagun of allegedly working hard to hand over the PDP structures to the ruling All Progressives Congress, urged him resign to pave way for a North Central person to emerge as acting chairman of the party pending the conduct of convention as required by the party’s constitution.
They also threatened to quit the party if the alleged doctored list of Local Government Caretaker Committees of the party in Rivers and 10 other states which they alleged was filled with members and loyalists of the All Progressive Congress, APC is not nullified.
Addressing newsmen at a press conference on Monday in Abuja, the spokesperson of the group and member representing Ideato Federal constituency of Imo, Hon. Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere alongside some other members of the G-60 lawmakers in the coalition said that the members cannot be in a political party where the activities of such party are determined by another political party.
The lawmakers particularly alleged that the list of Caretaker Committee members in Rivers State was doctored in favour of former Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, and the members of the Rivers House of Assembly who have defected from PDP to APC with card carrying members of APC emerging as would be officers of the PDP.
They also accused Damagun of allegedly approving the plot to impeach the Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, saying that Damagun “is fully aware of the entire details of the plots to impeach the Rivers State governor and he gave his approval to the plot, yet he refers himself as a Chairman of a party”.
Ugochinyere insisted that going by the constitution of the PDP and in line with its zoning formula enshrined in the constitution, it was the turn of the North Central to produce the chairman of the party and called on North Central leaders to meet and present a credible replacement for Sen. Iyorchia Ayu.
The opposition lawmakers said Damagun will fail in his alleged plot to sell PDP to the “highest bidder” saying his abdication of the responsibilities of the office of chairman of the largest opposition in the country coupled with the alleged tampering of the caretaker committee lists in Rivers and 10 other states has exposed the plot.
They called PDP stalwarts such as former Senate President David Mark, Muazu Babangida Aliyu, Senator Abba Moro and Bukola Saraki, amongst others to rise up and rescue the opposition PDP from being sold to the ruling party.
The lawmakers called on the NEC of PDP to review the sources of generating finance for the party to pay its national secretariat staff and to discharge all other responsibilities of the party as well as to investigate the allegation that pro-APC supporters are funding the present PDP of today.
The lawmakers also urged the PDP NEC to set up a committee to investigate all continuing acts of anti-party activities from 2023 and mete out appropriate sanctions which will serve as deterrent and also encourage cleansing of the party.
