Bode George: No more faction in PDP

“The sack of Senator Ali Modu Sheriff by the Supreme Court means that PDP is now one in the country under Senator Ahmed Makarfi. Let me assure all our people that there is peace in our party.
“In Lagos, we are one and there is peace. The secretariat will be open to all members. The notion that there is crisis in the state’s chapter is not true. Yes, there were frictions but everything has been resolved. The national secretariat is alive, they moderate all our activities”.
With these words, former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olabode George, declared on Monday that PDP is the party to join in the build-up to the 2019 general elections.
George, who spoke after receiving the key to the sealed Ikeja secretariat of the party in the state from the Commissioner of Police, Mr Fatai Owoseni, urged all PDP members to remain united.
George also declared that “Mr. Moshood Salvador is the state chairman of PDP”.
The order to hand over the state secretariat to George was contained in a letter by the Secretary, National Caretaker Committee, Senator Ben Obi, and addressed to Owoseni.
George said that the police complied with the request by the national secretariat of the party to give the key to him.
Brandishing the letter containing the request before newsmen, the party chieftain said the request was sequel to the court judgement in favour of the Makarfi-led caretaker committee.
George said Salvador was the chairman of the state as endorsed by the party’s National Executive Council (NEC) meeting and the occupation of the secretariat by any other factional executive was illegal.
He said the leadership of Salvador in the state was very clear, as the party’s NEC did not include Lagos as one of the states with leadership issues.
The party chieftain dismissed beliefs in some quarters that there was crisis in the party, saying the party only had frictions, which would be resolved.
George said he would hand over the keys to the right party members who would hold party activities there.
He said the apex court judgement already neutralised the debate of factions.
The party chieftain emphasised that the era of violence and impunity was over in the state’s chapter and urged all members to keep the peace.
He warned that those who might want to threaten peace at the secretariat should be ready to face the law.
Also, speaking, Salvador said he was the chairman of the legally-constituted party executive in the state.
He said he was duly elected as chairman at the party’s congress and that any other executive was illegal.
“I was duly elected at the party’s congress. And you journalists were there, isn’t it? Did you witness any other congress where another person was elected? So, I am the chairman and I have always been recognised up to the national level of the party,” he said.