A meeting organised by some members of the Rivers State Peoples Democratic Party to express their views over the party’s decision not to zone the governorship position in 2015 election was temporarily disrupted by a group of persons suspected to be working for the Nyesom Wike-led PDP.
At least nine persons were injured in the fracas that ensued when the group of persons stormed Delta Hotel in Old GRA, venue of the meeting, at about 12.30pm on Tuesday and engaged in a free-for-all.
The two groups threw chairs and other dangerous objects at each other, even as workers at the hotel watched in disbelief the action of the politicians.
The faction of the state PDP operating under the auspices of the Concerned Rivers State PDP Stakeholders, also held a press conference to call for the dissolution of the state working committee of the party chaired by Felix Obuah.
Calm, however, returned to the place when a group of policemen stormed the place and stopped the fight between the two factions.
Spokesman of the Concerned Rivers State PDP Stakeholders, Professor Israel Owate, explained that the state PDP led by Obuah has been docile, adding that the situation had made some members of the party to move to the All Progressives Congress.
Owate urged the PDP National Working Committee to dissolve the present party executive in the state, by invoking Part VIII, Section 5, sub-section 5 (2) (e) of the party’s constitution.
He also appealed to the national leadership of the party to implement the aims and objectives of the PDP Constitution, Chapter 1, Item 7 .2 (c) namely, ‘Adhering to the policy of rotation and zoning of party and public elective offices in pursuance of the principle of equity, justice and fairness’.
Owate attributed the crisis in the state PDP to the court judgment that brought Obuah to office, recalling that the judgement only produced two persons; Obuah as the chairman and Ibibia Walter as the secretary.
He added that the court ruling did not affect the other 12 members of the state working committee, wards and local government officers.
“The Rivers State PDP has been run unconstitutionally by only a two-man executive, a situation which has made the party a limited liability company of those who claimed they incorporated it in the Abuja High Court.
“The running of Rivers State PDP by a two-man executive has adversely affected and disrupted the functioning of the party at the ward, local government senatorial district and state levels.
“The party does not have a proper membership register and does not have legitimate and properly constituted party officers at the various levels. This is because the PDP officers that defected with Governor Rotimi Amaechi’s took with them PDP membership registers and confiscated some.”
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