Barrister Abdullahi Jalo, is the former Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the main opposition party, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP). In this interview with PAUL ORUDE in Bauchi, Jalo who was recently appointed by as Media Adviser by Senator Ahmed Makarfi, the Caretaker Committee Chairman of the party, explains why Senator Ali Modu Sheriff must quit the stage for the PDP to make a headway. The politician hails from Gombe State.

The PDP North east concerned stakeholders concluded its meeting in Bauchi last Saturday during which they agreed that Ali Modu Sheriff was the problem of the PDP. What do you have to say?
On the 8th of March, 2012, that was the day Bamanga Tukur was elected as the National Chairman of the party. If you look at section 40 of the PDP constitution, it states that the National Chairman will spend four years in office. Bamanga was the National Chairman till 20th January 2014. He served for two years as chairman. He resigned on January 20, 2014.

Did he resign or he was removed?
Well, I was the Deputy National Publicity secretary of the party. I was at the meeting when President Goodluck Jonathan announced that Bamanga had resigned. He showed us the resignation letter but it was not read.
This resulted in the election of Ahmadu Mu’azu on the 20th of January 2014, that same day. We went to the national convention where he was confirmed as national chairman according to section 36 and 37 of the PDP constitution which stipulates that at the National Executive Council meeting, you can’t have power as the national chairman to convene the convention of the party unless at the convention when this power is given to the national chairman. The convention was done on the 10th of December 2014. It was at this convention that Mu’azu was given full power as chairman. Please understand that Bamanga had spent two years and Muazu started on December 10, 2014.
You are giving us the history of the emergence of Bamanga and his successor Muazu. We want to know the stand of Sheriff as far as the current crisis in the PDP is concerned.
Don’t take us back. The explanation I am giving you is what will show to the world whether Sheriff was duly elected or not. After the resignation of Mu’azu on the 20th of March, 2015, his assistance, Secondus stepped in and acted as the National Chairman until February 16, 2016.  This means if you take the election of Bamanga till when Secondus took over, that is 16th February 2016, four years has finished. Section 40 of the PDP constitution stipulates four years for the office of the national chairman meaning Bamanga spent two years, Mauzu spent one year and Secondus spent one year.
What I want Nigerians to understand is that the NEC met on the 16th of February 2016 and made Sheriff the acting national chairman of the PDP for three months. There was nothing like chairman because only Bamanga spent two years. Mu’azu spent one year, the same with Secondus who spent one year. The constitution gives the party the power to appoint any member to act as national chairman. Here, the convention only has the power to elect a new Chairman. You are only confirmed as National Chairman at the convention of the party. On 21st of May, 2016, Sheriff was removed as acting chairman of the party at the national convention held in Port Harcourt. So where and how did he become chairman?
But Sheriff is insisting that he alone as the National Chairman has the power to convene the national convention in Port Harcourt and he was not given the chance.
That is why I took time to explain how Bamanga was elected, until Mu’azu and Secodus also took charge and for the four years, these three leaders have spent. Sheriff was made the acting national chairman for three months. This is a simple matter. If you are given the mandate to act, it doesn’t make you the national chairman until the convention says so.

In the constitution of the PDP, who has the power to call for a convention?
It is  the person that has been confirmed at the national convention of the party. We had a lacuna. Secondus after Muazu resigned, was acting while the party was shopping for the next National Chairman that will start a new tenure of four years and Ali Modu Sherif was to preside as acting for three months. Within this period he was acting, Sheriff did not have the power to endorse any candidate for INEC, he did not have the power to sign cheque to withdraw money from the bank, he did not have the power to call for national convention.

So who has this power if the acting chairman doesn’t?
The National Secretary of the PDP. If you go to Section 41 and 42, the PDP constitution gives the power to convene the national convention of the party to the National Secretary of the party that was elected along with Bamanga. The acting national chairman lacks that power.

Ali Modu Sheriff has become the bone of contention in the PDP. Your party has nine litigations in court. What is the next option for you as a political party?
The option is one. We are already in court and we are trying to understand the truth of the judgment which saw the judge after four or five days, trying to resolve the logjam when one of the supporters of Ali Modu Sheriff accused the judge of collecting bribe of N350 million. One of the judges called for proof, he ran from the court.
His name was Pero. One of the judges, a woman who is known to be upright, has slated this Friday to hear the case. A special court has been set up to address the issues.

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But Sheriff keeps saying he was on his own when he was called upon by the PDP governors to be the acting chairman because they believe in his capability. But why has he now become a liability to you, because he is saying he should be given the chance to reposition the party?
The explanation I gave on the tenure of Bamanga, Muazu and Secondu has answered this question.
The discordant voices in your party have made many to threaten to leave the party to form another party….with some suggesting that  the name should be changed as the way forward
PDP has a lot of assets-of people and property. There has never been a time that, because there is crisis in a political party, the members or leaders will abandon the party to the one who brought problem to that party. The huge asset of the PDP is beyond leaving the party to the one who is bringing problem to it.  What is obvious is that during the concerned North East PDP stakeholders meeting in Bauchi, we spoke with one mind, one voice. We know that Sherif is from the north east zone. We don’t want a repeat of the Boko Haram incidence. It started with all of us seeing the problem staring at us in the face. We saw young boys whom we knew killing people and bringing money to their parents who in turn hid them. This is what we are running away from in the current crisis in the PDP. That is why we in the north east, we had come out to talk. Let people not see our silence as endorsing what Sheriff is doing or stands for. Silence is an admission.
But with the way things are going in your party, Ali Modu Sheriff is not ready to listen to you or anybody in the party because he says he is in charge as the leader and should be given the chance to work and he insisted the governors brought him when he was on his own, he has even challenged you that if you think you will leave to establish a party as strong as the PDP, go ahead and try
On the 26th of February 2016, the front page of Daily Trust, Ali Modu Sheriff said openly that Governor Wike, Fayose and the Governor of Akwa Ibom State brought him in. They brought him in. He sought for their assistance in Bayelsa. It was during the swearing in of Governor Seriake Dickson for second tenure. I was there. Not that I was told.
At what point did the governors beg him when it was him, in fact, who went to look for their assistance?

Did the party ever imagine that Sheriff would someday become its problem as most of you perceive today?
During the national convention of the PDP in Port Harcourt, I was the Deputy Publicity Secretary. I was there and when it was time to present candidates, I presented mine-Saidu Kumo who got one vote. And Sheriff is claiming he got 69 votes, let him be sincere and ask himself again, what happened that day and how many votes did he get? He didn’t get 69 votes. Abubakar Mustapha, who was the organizing secretary was supposed to chase those that were not party faithful, those hired to cause confusion. I raised this observation but I was turned down.

Is the PDP regretting bringing Ali Modu Sherif to the centre?
Is there anything more regrettable than bringing Jimoh Ibrahim, Ali Modu Sheriff’s candidate? The election that brought Jimoh was done in Ibadan and not in Ondo. There were no officials from the headquarters of the PDP, no INEC to supervise the primaries and he was declared the PDP candidate for Ondo. They went before Justice Abang and they carried out their Wuru Wuru that Jimoh Ibrahim is the PDP candidate when another primary conducted in Ondo with INEC officials supervising and Jegede  was declared winner. Now INEC is saying they are obeying the court. that Jimoh is the court’s candidate.

You said the Northeast stakeholders have resolved that Sheriff is not speaking on their behalf, have you notified him about the outcome of your meeting in Bauchi?
This is not something hidden. Arc Ibrahim Bunu who is a member of the board of trustees of the PDP during that meeting told Mimiko not to make mistake. Adamu Waziri dispatched a committee to meet with Ali Modu Sheriff. But we know what he would say. He would say we cannot stop him from doing what he wants to do. He is not anybody’s stooge. He doesn’t have a godfather. But we in the North east have resolved that Sheriff is not speaking for us. He is not working for our party the PDP. He is working for others.
But he has obviously given to the party what the party didn’t bargain for. Actually, he is like, in your house, you asked God for things, He will also give you temptation.  What we are going through as a result of the obstinate nature of Ali Modu Sheriff is a test from God. It will pass by but what we know is that whatever Ali Modu Sheriff wants to do, whether he is calling for a meeting, he can’t do without the North east stakeholders who converged on Bauchi recently.
The Buhari administration has recorded successes in the fight against Boko Haram but with the recent killing of Col

Abu Ali and some officers, what is the way out? Are we actually succeeding?
The way out is that the US should support our military. Our military needs sophisticated weapons, they need intelligence gathering.
America, through its envoy has said that Buhari should continue  to do his best on Boko Haram, meaning that Boko Haram is acquiring more sophisticated weapons and information than the Nigerian military. I heard the Chief of Defence Staff saying Nigerians should stand up and support the military. Buratai is somebody we were together in the university. I am not in doubt of his capability. But there should be more diplomatic approach.