Plot To Retain Chairmanship Position In N/East Threatening To Tear PDP Apart

PDPA quiet storm is gathering in the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, over a clandestine plot to retain the national chairmanship position of the party in the North-East.
Those opposed to the plot, which includes some leading stakeholders, have vowed to hold a parallel convention should the chairmanship position be retained in the North-East, the zone where the incumbent, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff, hails from.
Vanguard reports that opposition to the plot resulted in a stalemate and indefinite adjournment of Tuesday’s meeting of the committee on zoning of positions in the party, chaired by Governor Emmanuel Udom of Akwa Ibom State.
The newspaper cited sources within the party as saying that associates of Mr. Sheriff were bringing pressure on all to zone the office to the North-East.
According to sources in the party, while a few PDP governors want the chairmanship position retained in the North-East, other members of the party, including some on the Board of Trustees, BoT, are opposed to this position and have vowed to organize a parallel convention, if the earlier position of the party to zone the chairmanship to the South-West, is not respected.
The sources said the decision by the Governor Emmanuel-led committee on zoning to retain the position in the North-East has pitched the committee against some major forces in the party, who believe that zoning the position to the North-East was just a ploy to allow the incumbent to retain the position.
According to a member of the BoT, the selection of members of the zoning committee is carefully done to ensure that the zoning favoured Sheriff, whose tenure is supposed to end on May 21, 2016 during the national convention of the party.
“We are aware of the intrigues going on but we will not allow that to happen. We know that some governors, especially that of Ekiti State, are working hard to retain the zoning to the North-East.
“What he failed to understand is that the party took a decision long time ago to zone the Presidency to the North and the party chairman to the South-West.
“How can the President and the party chairman come from the same zone? It is not going to work. We in the South-West are ready to take what belongs to us and we will not trade our right for a pot of porridge”, the member, who does not want to be identified, said.