A group of 60 Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, lawmakers have threatened to quit the party if the list of Local Government Caretaker Committees of the party in Rivers and 10 other states, allegedly doctored in favour of members of the All Progressive Congress, APC, were not nullified.
They also demanded the resignation of the Acting Chairman of the PDP, Umar Damagun, to pave way for a North Central person to emerge as acting chairman of the party pending the conduct of a convention, as required by the party’s constitution.
The lawmakers accused Damagun of working for APC, alleging that the list of Caretaker Committee members in Rivers State was doctored in favour of former Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike and the members of the Rivers House of Assembly who have defected from PDP to APC.
The lawmakers noted that they cannot be in a political party whose activities are determined by another political party.
The lawmakers, led by a member representing Ideato Federal constituency in the House of Representatives, Imo Ugochinyere, under the aegis of the ‘Opposition Lawmakers Coalition’, addressed a press conference on Monday in Abuja.
They further accused Damagun of approving the plot to impeach the Rivers State Governor, Similayan Fubara.
To this end, the lawmakers demanded: “Immediate resignation of Umar Iliya Damagun as Ag. National Chairman of PDP for anti-party activities and allow North central produce the acting chairman as clearly stated in the pdp constitution or watch us reconsider our membership of the party in the months ahead if the right thing is not done.
“Or removal of Umar Iliya Damagun by the NEC of the party with further sanctions against him for his anti-party activities.”
The lawmakers further insisted that a credible party leader from the North Central be confirmed chairman of the party in line with the zoning formula as enshrined in the Constitution.
“Where these demands are not met, we, the Opposition Lawmakers Coalition from PDP in the National Assembly will be left with no other option but suspend participating in the party activities and seek a new political relationship where decisions in that party will not be taken in the Secretariat of another political party.
“But this is the last of the last paths where every other reasonable effort at resolution fails,” they stated.