PDP chairman grants amnesty to opposing faction

The new leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has told warring factions to come back into the party fold as it is granting them an amnesty.

On Wednesday, July 14, 2017, a five man panel of the Supreme Court sacked Senator Ali Modu Sheriff and installed Senator Ahmed Makarfi as the National Chairman of the PDP.

This ended the leadership crisis that had rocked the party since May 21, 2016 when it attempted to remove Sheriff as chairman.

In a show of good faith, Makarfi has released a statement through spokesperson of the party's National Caretaker Committee, Dayo Adeyeye, saying that the court judgement should serve as a fresh start for the party and not another reason to stay divided.

In the statement, Adeyeye said, "We won't punish anyone for what had happened in the past. Our doors are open for everyone, including those who are not members of the PDP.

"It is general amnesty for all. It is when you begin to commit fresh sins or causing fresh troubles that we will then look at it.

"We want to appeal to everybody, those who have cases in courts, to withdraw them in the interest of the party. You can see that everybody is happy because of the outcome of the case."

The major party members who have aligned with Sheriff include his deputy, Dr. Cairo Ojougboh, the party's acting National Publicity Secretary, Bernard Mikko, and former National Secretary, Prof. Wale Oladipo.

Sheriff had been installed as the party's National Working Committee (NWC) chairman in an acting capacity until he was removed during the party's 2016 National Convention. Makarfi was appointed to replace him as the party's caretaker chairman.

Sheriff, a former governor of Borno state, rejected the convention's decision, declaring that any other chairman was a 'counterfeit'.