By Myke Uzendu, Abuja
The National Chairman of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Prince Uche Secondus has assured that both the Deputy governor Mahdt Gusau and the masses in Zamfara are still with the party even as the executive governor, Bello Matawalle has perfected plans to move to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Secondus in a press conference on Tuesday after a meeting with members of the party’s National Working Committee (NWC) said that it is shameful for governors to abandon the mandate PDP legally obtained through the ballot box.
He said that the governors that left the ruling party did so under fear but expressed confidence that PDP will be very victorious at the polls in 2023.
He said, “From all indications, Gov. Bello Matawalle has lost memory of how he came to become the governor of Zamfara state and he needed to be reminded that no law allows him to cross over to any other party with the statutory mandate given to PDP through the ballot box.
“Let me also emphasize that APC governors and government of APC are overbearing on the system and moving to poach our governors and this to them is regarded as an achievement. I have never seen where you have economic crises, insecurity crises, then the ruling party goes, poaching governors and 18 governors as published on Social Media will be moving, leaving their states to Zamfara, to celebrate the killings of innocent citizens in Zamfara state, the hunger in Zamfara state. This is a shame and it is laughable.
“They are going after our governors but we are going after the masses of this country. The governors have one vote but we are after the people, the masses, the people who are suffering under this government.
“The masses are solidly behind us, the masses are for the PDP and we stand here to state clearly that we shall form this new government coming in 2023 because of the masses and not because of the governors.
“It is a shame for all the governors that left the PDP for fear.They were initimadated by the instrument of this government but am happy that the masses in their state especially in Zamfara none of them left” he said.
The national chairman said that the NWC and the party’s legal team are putting heads together to decide on the next line of action.
Earlier, National Publicity Secretary of the party, Kola Ologbondiyan has stated that the party will explore all the constitutional provisions to ensure that the rug is pulled off the feet of the governor if he abandons the PDP.
“A combined reading of Section 221 of the 1999 Constitution as the pronouncements of the Supreme Court in Faleke v. INEC (2016) is clear in holding that it is the political party that stands for election, that votes scored in election belong to the political party and that the candidate nominated to contest at an election by his party, acts only as the agent of his party” Ologbondiyan stated.
The PDP also cautioned members of the National Assembly as well as members of the Zamfara State House of Assembly, not to allow themselves to be pushed into losing their seats as the provisions of the constitution is very clear in barring lawmakers from cross carpeting, except in a situation of a division in the political party upon which platform they were elected.
However, the governor is yet to decamp from the party, as at the time of filling this report. It was learnt that the governor and APC officials were still in Kaduna strategizing on the defection modalities and power devolution.
The AUTHORITY learnt that the deputy governor is also getting ready to address the press in Abuja as soon as the governor announces his exit.
