There was drama yesterday as former a political adviser to President Goodluck Jonathan, Ahmed Gulak, stormed the national secretariat of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), declaring himself chairman of the party.
But the National Working Committee, NWC of the PDP in a swift reaction told Gulak that he cannot become national chairman of the party through the backdoor. It described him as a fifth columnist working for the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Gulak, who arrived the national headquarters of PDP at 1:42pm in company of other aides of the former president, said there was a change in the proposed date of the national convention which was set for March this year by the Uche Secondus-led National Working Committee (NWC).
He arrived the party premises yesterday, declaring a high court had just thrown out an application by the PDP and the acting national chairman of PDP, Uche Secondus, which sought to stop a previous ruling demanding that Secondus should vacate office within 14 days.
When Gulak arrived the PDP national secretariat, the NWC was having its statutory weekly meeting at the other party headquarters, popularly called Legacy House in Maitama.
He also noted that by legal implication every party member from the party has accepted him as chairman of the party.
However, the national legal adviser, Victor Kwon, and deputy national publicity secretary, Abdullahi Jalo, told newsmen that the court ruling cited by Gulak yesterday was not mentioned at all.
While Kwon admitted that the court judgement that favored Gulak called for the party to appoint a person from North-east within 14 days, he stressed that that decision does not mandate PDP to appoint Gulak as chairman.
He added that PDP had filed an appeal on December 16 and an application for injunction pending the appeal, which were served on Gulak.
He noted that party did not recieve any hearing notice that the application came up yesterday.
LEADERSHIP recalls that the national chairmanship position of the PDP was zoned to the North-east. But Secondus, who is from South-south region and was elected as deputy national chairman of the party constitutionally assumed the acting national chairmanship position following the resignation of Adamu Mu’azu since May 2015.
An Abuja High Court on December 16, ruled in favor of Gulak, mandating Secondus to vacate the seat within 14 days and allow a member of the party from the zone to emerge the national chairman.
Gulak insists that as far as the law is concerned he is the party chairman.
“We cannot continue to have our party headless. Failure to assume duty as the national chairman will leave our party organs especially the NWC, NEC and other units of PDP,’’ he said.
Those who accompanied Gulak to the headquarters include Chief Doyin Okupe, Dr. Sylva Opusunju, Hon. Chuma Nnaji, Engr. Mohammed Kachalla, Hon Jonathan Asake, Hon Moshood Salvador, Hon. Ilya Yunana, Alh. Ahmed Gusau, Denis Alonge Niyi and Hon. Abdulfatah Adeyanju. (Leadership)
