Senator Ali-Modu Sherif on Monday in Abuja assumed office as National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and decried calls for his resignation by PDP Rescue Group.
Sheriff, in an interview with newsmen after he took over, said he was not going to resign his appointment as the chairman of the party.
“They will have to wait for long because I am not going to resign. The leadership of this party in their wisdom asked me to lead. If the National Executive Council (NEC) of this party collectively asks me to leave, I will leave. I will reposition this party and take it to election within a time frame decided by the leaders of this party to conduct a credible, effective congress that will stand the test of time,” he said.
The PDP Rescue Group during a press conference on Sunday in Abuja, asked Sheriff to resign as PDP National Chairman.
Some of the Rescue Group leaders at the press conference were Ambassador Wilberforce Juta, Senator Adolphus Wabara, Alhaji Mukhtar Shagari and others.
On when his tenure as PDP National Chairman would elapse, Sheriff said that the party’s leadership would take the decision.
Sheriff also made clarification on his appointment contrary to the party’s constitution that for anybody to be appointed or elected as PDP official, he must have spent three years in the party.
He said that PDP had earlier granted him a waiver on the matter.
Sheriff added that he did not regret all the political parties he was part of its formation including the All Progressives Congress (APC).
“I was the founding father of the UNCP, and I was also one of the founding fathers of APC.”
He added that he left the APC because he is a man of principles.
“There are issues that I cannot discuss on the pages of newspapers because I am an elder statesman.
“I am a man of principles and I stand by my principles.
“The same instruments we used to make APC attractive to all Nigerians, we are going to use it for PDP now.”
He added that his assignment was to talk with every founding father of the party and those who had left because they were aggrieved.
Responding on the allegation of his link with Boko Haram, Sheriff said nobody in the position of authority who knows the truth has ever accused or linked him to the sect.
“No court of competent jurisdictions has ever linked me to Boko Haram.”
Sheriff added that he was not only the first target of Boko Haram, but his younger brother was also killed by the terrorists.
Earlier during the handover ceremony, Sheriff called for the support of all PDP members and leaders.
He said that the PDP could still be the largest party in Africa if all members decided to work together.
