A lawyer, Dr J.Y. Musa, has warned the national leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, not to endorse alleged plot by Governor Godwin Obaseki and his cronies to forge ahead with the harmonisaiton of the structures of the Edo State chapter of the party.
There have been moves to push through the planned harmonisation of the party structure in the state despite a pending court case against the exercise.
Musa, who is a lawyer to some elected officials of the party in Edo State, stated in a letter to the Acting National Chairman, that continuing with the harmonization would amount to a criminal contempt of court with its attendant grave consequences to all concerned.
The notice to the party was consequent upon concerns that the development could also affect the position of the party in future and past elections as party stakeholders were comparing the situation in Edo State to that in the Zamfara State chapter of the All Progressives Congress, APC ahead of 2019 General Election.
Dr Musa who is counsel to Hon. Habeeb Baba Sheriff Idenobemhe and three others in the suit against the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP in suit no FHC/ABJ/CS/1618/2020 averred thus:
“We want to bring to your notice the pendency of this suit in which Originating Summons and Motion for Interlocutory injunction were served on the Peoples Democratic Party and the Chairman of the party, sued as first and second defendants respectively.
“The suit pertains to the protest against the illegality the Edo State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party is angling to embark upon in the name of a strange ‘harmonization’ aimed at truncating the tenure of elected Executive Officers of the Peoples Democratic Party at all lvels in Edo State which runs cotrarty to the provisions of the party’s constitution. Some of the elected officers who are to be affected by the purported hramonisation and who want to to have the provisions of the constitution of the party upheld and protected by all organs of the party approached the court for the protection of their rights after exhausting the available internal remedies.
“We believe that in this new Peoples Democratic Party, that Nigerians are expecting much from the defendants in this case will refrain from doing any act that will tamper with the res of this case and foist on the court a fait accompli.
“Now that the matter is before a competent court of law to do any act will fetter the judicial power of the court or frustrate the due administration of justice in this case will amount to criminal contempt of court with its harsh attendant consequences.
“We are bringing this to your attention because notwithstanding the pendency of this suit and the motion on notice, the Edo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP is pushing seriously to embark on the illegal harmonization.”
The harmonisation is being pursued by Governor Obaseki to allegedly undercut validly-elected members of the State Executive Committee of the party in Edo State and supplant them with his loyalists who defected with him from the APC in 2020.
The move has precipitated tension and discord in the party resulting in suspension, counter suspension and a rash of litigation in the state chapter of the PDP.
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