The splinter faction of the Peoples Democratic Party led by Alhaji Abubakar Kawu Baraje, on Sunday demanded the immediate resignation of Alhaji Bamanga Tukur as the National Chairman of the party, saying he is not a registered and card-carrying member, hence, has no business holding office.
According to the New PDP, Alhaji Tukur was expelled from the PDP in 2006 along with nine others following disciplinary action taken against them for anti-party activities. Since then, he has not officially returned to the party.
A statement signed by the spokesperson of the faction, Chief Eze Chukwuemeka Eze said that records available show that Alhaji Tukur has not followed due process for his readmission into the party.
“He neither applied for, nor obtained the requisite waiver by the National Executive Committee of the party before offering himself for election into the office of National Chairman in 2012,” the New PDP spokesman said.
“This makes his membership incurably defective and his emergence as PDP’s National Chairman null and void and of no effect whatsoever since he is the product of a flawed process.
“Consequently, all the actions he has taken as the Chairman of PDP since his purported election in March 2012, including the illegal, contentious convention of August 2013, are null and void and of no effect.”
Chief Eze said that reliable information reaching the faction from the PDP National Secretariat indicates that Tukur is now desperately seeking a way out of his predicament and has set about falsifying party records with regard to revalidating his membership through the back door.
“We wish to put him on notice that this is criminal and we hope he understands the consequences of his actions,” he said, adding, “Alhaji Tukur’s continued occupation of the Office of PDP National Chairman is clearly fraudulent, illegal and unconstitutional.”
The faction urged President Goodluck Jonathan to settle Tukur with a ministerial appointment if he is desirous of finding him a job, and called for the immediate assumption of office by Baraje as the National Chairman of the party.