The chairman of the Peoples? Democratic Party (PDP) special convention committee, Professor Jerry Gana, has hinted that the committee will work with the delegate lists used for the 2012 convention of the party. He explained that only the names of persons, who have left the party or have died, as identified by the state party, would be expunged from the list.
He debunked claims that his panel was encroaching into the powers of the party?s National Working Committee (NWC) ahead of its forthcoming convention.
At a press conference in Abuja yesterday, Gana, who was accompanied by the deputy chairman of the committee and deputy Senate president, Ike Ekweremadu, announced new dates for the party?s proposed convention and South-West zonal congress dates, which were postponed because of the ongoing Ramadan.
He said the convention will hold on Saturday, August 31, 2013 in Abuja while the South-West zonal congress will hold on Saturday, August 24 in Ibadan, Oyo State. He further announced that the date for acquisition of forms of interest still persists until 14 days before the convention.
Gana who also admitted that the committee was aware of the petition by the sacked PDP national secretary, Olagusonye Oyinlola, faulting the move to organise the zonal congress as the seat was not vacant, said the issue was being handled by the party?s legal team.
He, however, said the sale of forms for the seat of the national secretary will go on pending the legal resolution of the matter, just as he assured that if the case swings in favour of Oyinlola, monies paid by aspirants would be returned to them.
On the tussle between NWC and his committee, Gana said, ?The deputy chairman and myself are not running the party on the pages of newspapers and therefore we want to respect the tradition of the party. Whatever has been said we don?t want to take issues with our national chairman. I have not read the papers in details. Whatever has been said it would be resolved outside the pages of newspapers with our national chairman.?
