Senator-Makarfi
Despite the build-up to it, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) convention failed to hold yesterday in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital.
Instead, the party settled for a meeting of national officers and the Convention Planning Committee members at its secretariat on Aba Road, Port Harcourt. At the meeting, the tenure of the Caretaker Committee Chairman, Senator Ahmed Makarfi, was extended by 12 months. The committee’s initial term of three months ended yesterday.
PDP factional National Chairman Senator Ali Modu Sheriff said in Abuja that the decisions at the meeting were “illegal” because it was not convened in accordance with Section 31 (4) of the party’s constitution.
Force spokesman Don Awunah, a Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) said the convention was sealed off to prevent a breakdown of law and order.
Justice Okon Aban of the Federal High Court, Abuja, on Tuesday stopped the convention following a suit filed by PDP’s factional chairman Senator Ali Modu Sheriff.
But his counterpart in Port Harcourt, Justice Ibrahim Watila, approved the convention and directed the police and Department of State Services (DSS) to provide security for it. He also ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to monitor the convention.
As early as 4am yesterday, the police sealed off the Sharks Stadium, where the convention was to hold.
A police Toyota Hilux van, marked RRT 016, with registration number NPF 2047 D, with some policemen inside was parked at the stadium’s entrance. An unmarked Armoured Personnel Carrier (APC) and many police patrol vehicles and security personnel were also stationed nearby.
Police Commissioner Francis Mobolaji Odesanya said the action was in enforcement of the order stopping the convention.
He told reporters that the police did not seal off the stadium, insisting that his men and other security agencies only acted in compliance with the order to ensure safety of lives and property.
The police chief said: “We are only obeying a court order. It is not my duty to interpret court orders. You (reporters) are in a position to interpret the orders. Our actions are in line with the court order. It is not relevant when we got to the venue. The police have been there (venue of PDP’s National Convention in Port Harcourt). We are always everywhere. We are always providing security everywhere. That is our primary assignment, to make sure that everywhere within the state is secure.
“Police did not seal off anywhere. We are merely providing security and ensuring that there is peace, security and order. Journalists are not delegates and you cannot speak for delegates. You are journalists and you are not accredited (as PDP delegates).”
The police ordered the Outside Broadcasting (OB) vans of the Africa Independent Television (AIT), Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) and Channels Television which had been mounted at the stadium since Tuesday, out of the place.
The inner room reporter, who was at the stadium at 6 a.m., was prevented by security personnel from entering. PDP members and others who had gained entry were ordered out.
Governor Nyesom Wike, his aides, loyalists and some PDP members, who came to the stadium were also barred by security personnel from moving close to its entrance. Deleagtes, who received calls in their hotels about the sealing off of the stadium, trooped to the Government House for more information.
At the PDP secretariat, House of Representatives Minority Leader Leo Ogor moved a motion for the suspension of national officers’ election which was expected to hold at the convention.
Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu moved a motion for the extension of Makarfi tenure. The motion was seconded by former Minister of Women Affairs Hajia Zainab Maina.
The delegates also resolved that Makarfi would not vie for office at the expiration of his tenure. His committee’s membership was also expanded from seven to 13.
In his acceptance speech, Makarfi promised to sustain the efforts in “rebuilding, re-uniting and restoring the lost glory” of PDP.
Wike, the National Convention Planning Committee chairman, put the question for the extension of the committee’s lifespan and it was unanimously approved.
Reacting to the development, the All Progressives Congress (APC) urged PDP not to blame the police and other security operatives for its woe. The state’s Public Relations Officer of APC, Chris Finebone, urged PDP to fix itself without denigrating the judiciary and disturbing public peace.
APC said: “We find it hard to blame the police for stepping in, to maintain law and order. Prior to today (yesterday), we all saw the police protecting the preparatory activities of the PDP at the Sharks Stadium, Port Harcourt in the past couple of days, until more court orders started coming in yesterday (Tuesday).
“We believe the police when they say that they have intervened to ensure that there is no breakdown of law and order, particularly in Rivers State, because those two commodities (law and order) are scarce items.
”We believe that the PDP leaders had a better option and the benefit of time to sort out themselves, without sucking in the Nigerian judiciary into their internal wrangling, which is exactly what they have succeeded in doing by their numerous court matters that have resulted to equally many conflicting court orders.
”We call on the PDP members to sort themselves out, to ensure that they can carry on with the primary function of a political party, which is seeking political power through legitimate means, in line with the statute books of Nigeria.”
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