Resume duty or face sanction, Sheriff orders PDP admin staff

The National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Ali Modu Sheriff, on Tuesday again directed all the administrative staff at the National Secretariat to resume work immediately or be sanctioned for abandoning duties.

In a statement signed by Mr Bernard Mikko, the party’s Acting National Publicity Secretary and made available to news men in Abuja. Sheriff declared that affected staff should see the fresh directive as the last warning.

The staff had on Monday said that they would not resume work until certain conditions were met, insisting that they were neutral of the crisis.

The statement reads, “All staff of the PDP National Secretary that have not resumed duties should immediately go back to work

“This notice serves as another opportunity for the staff of the National Secretariat to take advantage of the magnanimity of the leadership of the National Chairman, Sen (Dr) Ali Modu Sheriff and resume duties in line with the press statement issued after the meeting of the National Working Committee of Wednesday March 1, 2017 and signed by the National Secretary, Prof Wale Adewale

“Failure to heed the call by the National Secretary will attract disciplinary procedures as the staff is deemed to be conversant with their terms and conditions of employment, particularly the PDP Establishment Manual that stipulates that they remain apolitical

“However, recent events and pronouncements of some members of staff under the guise of PDP Welfare Association, have shown that they have breached their terms of employment and conditions of service and now engaging in the selection, determination and emergence of their bosses who are political leaders at the Wadata Plaza

“This is gross abuse of office and totally unacceptable

“Please recall that current members of the National Working Committee emerged through due process and established traditions in line with Article 47(6) of the PDP Constitution 2012 (As Amended)

“This is sequel to the voluntary resignation of some national officers of the party who have since collected their terminal benefits and deposed to an affidavit to that effect before the botched national convention in Port Harcourt on May 21, 2016

“Members of the PDP Welfare Association and indeed all committed staff of the National Secretariat who have not resumed duties should immediately get back to work as they are neither on trial nor involved in any crisis or litigation necessitating any form of political or legal solution to resolve

“The belligerent stand and the series of communiqués issued by some members of staff indicates clearly that they have positioned themselves in the center of political conflagrations involving their bosses against their terms and conditions of employment

“The dissident group which they pretend to profess their loyalty had been proscribed by law and legally dead. Any attempt to resurrect a dead horse will only amount to superstition and largely futile. Senator Ali Modu Sheriff and the entire NWC are committed to bringing the party to fame to the realization of the dreams of the founding fathers and should be supported to do so.”