Crisis rocks PDP South-South as Zonal Secretary rejects ZEC meeting

From Femi Folaranmi, Yenagoa

Crisis is brewing at the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) South-South zone following the zonal secretary, Chief Felix Omemu’s rejection of a South-South Zonal Executive Committee (ZEC) meeting scheduled for Saturday, February 15th in Benin, Edo State.

The suspended Zonal Chairman and National Vice-Chairman, South-South of the PDP, Mr. Dan Orbih, was said to have called for the meeting.

Omemu, in a statement issued in Yenagoa, stated that the meeting was illegal, stressing that, in line with the PDP constitution, the Zonal Executive Council meeting could only be held with the approval of the Zonal Working Committee.

According to him, there was no time that the Zonal Working Committee deliberated and agreed to convene a meeting of the Zonal Executive Council.

‘’In line with Section 26, (2c) of our party’s Constitution as amended in 2017, there was no such time that the Zonal Working Committee meeting, being a precursor to the Zonal Executive Committee, agreed on any reports to be discussed at the Saturday’s scheduled meeting.

‘’As the Zonal Secretary of the party, I am therefore not aware of such a meeting that purportedly resolved that the ZWC could go ahead to convene the highest meeting of the party leaders in the Zone. I wish to distance myself from such an illegal ZEC meeting and gathering being called by Chief Dan Orbih,’’ he said.

The zonal scribe, while insisting that the ZEC meeting being called by Orbih is illegal, urged PDP leaders in the zone to stay away from the meeting as it is being convened to further harm the interest of the party.

‘’I also wish to call on my colleagues in the zone to boycott Saturday’s meeting, whose agenda remains suspicious and may not likely serve the general interest of the party, as it is clear that the majority of the leaders of the party in the zone were not duly consulted before calling for the meeting.

‘’By this statement, I am placing on alert the key PDP leaders in the South-South zone, including our state governors, former governors on the platform of the PDP, members of the National Assembly from the zone, principal officers of the State Houses of Assembly from the zone, members of the National Working Committee from the zone, and also state chairmen of our party from the zone.

‘’I urge the leaders of the party in the zone to call Chief Orbih to order to avoid any untoward consequences of allowing an illegal meeting to be held in the zone.’’