‘Only Supreme Court can resolve PDP crisis’

• Makarfi, Sheriff camps trade accusations

Former Deputy National Chairman, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) South West zone, Chief Olabode George has said the ultimate solution to the lingering crisis in the party lies with the Supreme Court.

George, a supporter of the Ahmed Makarfi-led Caretaker Committee of the PDP in an interaction with reporters in Lagos yesterday, said the PDP should not fold its hands and pretend that the current crisis afflicting it was merely a political dispute that could be resolved on some round table.

Also, the Spokesman of the Ali Modu Sheriff leadership faction of the party, Mr. Bernard Mikko, said the court is a legal option to the solution but since the party could no longer wait for the process of the court, it decided it should seek peaceful resolution to the crisis.

George said, “My clear submission is that the ultimate resolution of the PDP crisis resides in the Supreme Court. “There can’t be any half measures anymore. We need a clear, firm and binding total solution. This can only be obtained at the highest court in the land. Nothing else will do.”
 
Meanwhile, the Ahmed Makarfi-led National Caretaker Committee alleged yesterday that the ambition of the party’s National Chairman, Ali Modu Sheriff to contest the presidential election in 2019 was the main cause of the crisis.

It equally alleged that Sheriff and his supporters had resorted to blackmailing the Supreme Court over the party’s leadership tussle pending before it.In a twist, the Ali Modu Sheriff led faction also yesterday accused the Makarfi led faction of allegedly attempting to buy the judgement of the apex court in respect of the leadership crisis.

Addressing a press conference in Abuja, spokesman of the caretaker committee, Dayo Adeyeye, said that it was unfortunate that Sheriff had not abandoned his 2019 presidential ambition which according him originally caused the crisis.

Announcing the decision of the caretaker committee not to partake in the planned convention by Sheriff, Adeyeye alleged that “Sheriff intended to put his cronies as chairman and officers of the party to give him the presidential ticket. This was why many abandoned him before.”

On the party’s case pending before the Supreme Court the group claimed that Sheriff and his loyalists were merely blackmailing the apex court by insinuating that the caretaker committee intended to procure judgement of the Supreme Court.

Deputy National Chairman of the PDP, Cairo Ojougbo had earlier yesterday said that the caretaker committee and some prominent politicians were making arrangement to ensure that the Supreme Court judgement is in their favour.