The crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Lagos is far from being over as a chieftain of the party, Segun Adewale has insisted that he is the Chairman of the party in the state.
Adewale, popularly known as Aeroland, made the claim while speaking with newsmen in Lagos on Saturday.
He claimed that Dr Adegbola Dominic was not the party’s Chairman in the state.
Adewale was a factional Chairman of the party in the state during the national leadership tussle between former Gov. Ahmed Makarfi and Sen. Ali Modu Sheriff in 2017.
While Adewale was aligned with the Sheriff faction, another factional chairman in the state, Mr Moshood Salvador, was aligned with the Makarfi group.
The Supreme Court on July 12, 2017, sacked Sheriff, affirming Makarfi as the national chairman.
Following the judgement, the national leadership directed Adewale, who had been occupying the party secretariat, to submit the keys to Chief Bode George, an ally of Makarfi, and work with Salvador on a power sharing arrangement.
Adewale agreed to the arrangement to have Salvador as Chairman of an executive, including members from his (Adewale’s) own group.
Salvador, as a sitting Chairman, dumped the party for the All Progressives Congress(APC) in 2018 after a disagreement with George and other party leaders.
His exit paved the way for the emergence of Dominic as the new chairman.
However, Adewale told newsmen on Saturday that he was the authentic Chairman and not Dominic.
He said Dominic could no longer lay claim to the seat as he was appointed to fill the vacuum left by Salvador for a period of three months.
He said the three months given to Dominic had expired in December and that he (Adewale) was the chairman as he only stepped aside for Salvador to allow peace in the party.
Adewale claimed that the court judgement that sacked Sherrif as a factional national chairman, did not sack him as a state chairman, and that his tenure would only expire in 2020.
Adewale said he had since taken over the state party secretariat at Shogunle and was working on some legal processes to ensure a firm grip on affairs of the party in the chapter.
“I am the authentic PDP chairman in Lagos, I only stepped aside for Salvador after the national leadership of the party asked me to do so.
“After two years of factional crisis, I obeyed the leadership of the party to allow peace to reign.
“The judgement that sacked Sherrif did not sack me as Chairman and I was supposed to lead the party till 2020 before I stepped aside.
“When Salvador left for APC, I made attempts to step in to continue, but there were appeals from all corners that election was underway and that I should allow somebody from the George group to occupy the position in the interim, for a period of three months.
“I agreed and remained on the sidelines and Dominic emerged. But now, his tenure expired in December while I still have my original mandate till 2020.
“He can no longer claim to be chairman. I am the chairman now. In fact, I have taken over the secretariat and I will not allow anybody to do anything there for now.
“I am working on some legal steps to get things done and I do not want any violence or threats to peace around the secretariat. I don’t want anybody to call me names I don’t bear.
“The only conditions I will shift position is for all groups in the party to agree on an elective congress as soon as possible, or a court action stopping me from being the chairman.
“As things are right now, I am the Lagos PDP Chairman, that is my position, ” he said.
Adewale, who contested the Lagos West Senatorial Election in 2015 under the party’s platform but lost to APC, claimed that situations had become worse in the chapter since he stepped aside.
Reacting, Dominic said he remained the state Chairman of the party, urging that Adewale’s claim should be disregarded.
“All I can say for now is that it is not true that he is the chairman. I am the chairman.
“I refer you to the national leadership of the party on the matter. I do not want to involve myself in all these things.
“Please get across to the party’s secretariat, ” he said.
-NAN
