Only dialogue, political solution will end PDP leadership crisis —Adeniran

A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and member of its Board of Trustees, Professor Tunde Adeniran, speaks with JACOB SEGUN OLATUNJI on the way out of the leadership crisis rocking the PDP, insisting on political solution rather than litigation as the way forward.

SIR, as one of the founding fathers of the PDP, what do you think is the solution to the lingering leadership crisis rocking in the party in view of the recent Court of Appeal judgment that reinstated Senator Ali Modu Sheriff as its National Chairman?

Thank you. My take is that some of the reactions that have followed the 17 February 2017 Port Harcourt Court of Appeal verdict in CA/PH/349/2016 SHERIFF and ORS Vs. PDP and ORS call for a rethinking and reawakening among lovers of democracy, the rule of law and good governance in our dear country – Nigeria.   The essence of the Port Harcourt judgment is that it nullified the decision of the National Convention of 21 May, 2016 and reinstated the Sheriff-led National Working Committee of the party.   This is an appeal to all PDP members nationwide that whatever our positions on the contending issues and views on the appeal court decision, this is not the time for mutual recrimination or vitriolic attacks on any of our members, grandstanding and self-serving rhetoric. So much damage has been done to the PDP, Democratic development and the rule of law that we should no longer fuel the combustible political packages designed by enemies of democracy from within and without.

As I have always maintained, a political solution remains the best option and our founding fathers and all critical stakeholders must resume action in this regard, not just for the sake of justice, fair play and stability within the PDP, but for the survival of democracy in Nigeria.  Now, more than ever before, we should all be concerned about democracy and our dear country. Nobody should be under any illusion that the ruling APC will ever change from its mission of dictatorship through deliberate and carefully calculated violation of human rights, the rule of law and democratic processes.   The future of democracy in Nigeria depends on the PDP’s unity and return to its core values, vision and mission of taking power to the people and saving them from the suffocating grip of anti-democratic forces.

How do you see the developments in the party, especially between the warring two factions?

What we are facing in the party is largely internal but externalised. When some cases were taken to courts, at that time it was inevitable. Now whatever had been said and no matter what we say in future, we still need political solution. This is an issue that will still need to be solved. Our leaders should come together on the basis of principles which informed the forming of the party in the first place.

How can a lasting peace be restored to the once formidable party ahead of the 2019 general election?

To have a lasting peace and stability in the party and to ensure justice and fair play to all, it will involve negotiation and dialogue among all the stakeholders. It has come to a point when we must realise that the interest of the masses who own the party and in the interest of democracy that should guide the actions of the elders as well as the interest of Nigeria as a country should be uppermost in our minds. All those concerns should now be placed at the front burner while personal prejudices ego and aspiration should be put aside in the interest of the party, democracy and the nation in general.

We must not fail the majority of Nigerians who are looking up to the party to perform the rescue operation from the present deplorable condition of Nigerians. Any where you look, either the economic sector, the security situation and the welfare of the people generally, we are in a terrible situation that could never have been imagined. With mass hunger, compounded by general insecurity of lives and properties, people are not safe in the streets, in their homes, such a society appears doomed. This is why the PDP stakeholders must rise to the present challenges in the country and provide effective leadership. The party members through unity and quick resolution of the lingering disagreement will make things happen again. We must not fail Nigerians; we must not fail our nation at this particular time which calls for self-sacrifice and the highest level of patriotism.