Youth Leader ‘Takes Over’ PDP, As Party Chieftains Escape Mob Attack

The self appointed leader of the Concerned Peoples Democratic Party Youths (CPDPY), Aderemi Olusegun, yesterday, proclaimed himself as the national chairman of the party.
Olusegun, who, Tuesday, gave one week notice to the national leaders of the party to resolve their differences, yesterday, stormed the PDP secretariat of the party, in Abuja, and took over the building.

Olusegun warned the embattled chairman of the party, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff, and the caretaker chairman, Senator Ahmed Makarfi, not to go close to the secretariat.
The PDP national secretary and national auditor, Professor Wale Oladipo and Adewole Adeyanju, respectively, who were part of the National Working Committee (NWC) members sacked recently in Port Harcourt, narrowly escaped being lynched by the angry youths, who discovered that the two officials remained seated in their office at the secretariat.

Our correspondent, who monitored the entire drama, observed that the two officials of the party, having understood the implication and gravity of the protest inside the secretariat, attempted to go out secretly, but were trapped by the angry protesters.

Some of the protesters declared that Oladipo and Adeyanji must be dealt with for remaining in their office along with Sheriff, after the expiration of their tenure.

They claimed this was a move to destroy the party ahead of the Edo, Ondo states governorship election and the 2019 general elections.

Our correspondent overheard Oladipo begging the youths, saying: “Allow me to go, please. I won’t come back again.”

By 1:38pm, Oladipo’s vehicle was sneaked out through the back gate of the secretariat and, in few minutes time, the former officials were smuggled out of the tension-laden building, to the nearby Sky Memorial building, from where they escaped.

However, Adeyanju’s blue Toyota Camry, with registration number Lagos APP 767CK was left inside the secretariat.

After the duo had left, the youths announced the takeover of the secretariat and called on the Board of Trustees (BoT) to organise a convention within three days to elect new leaders of the party.

They locked all the doors into the main party offices and handed over the keys to the BoT Chairman, Senator Walid Jibrin, around 3:13pm.

Justifying what they did, Olusegun, who is in his late 30s, said: “In view of all the happenings in the PDP, I hereby declare myself as acting chairman of the party.

“Both Sheriff and Makarfi should stay away from the party’s secretariat from this moment.”

However, a source within the party, told the Daily Trust that as soon as he returned, Sheriff, who was in Maiduguri, would go to the office.

A statement issued by Inuwa Bwala, the special adviser on media to Sheriff’, yesterday, alleged that the youth protest, which he described as “an act of hooliganism and brigandage,” was organised by the “illegal” caretaker committee headed by Makarfi.

Meanwhile, yesterday, in the evening (5:27pm), some youth, chanting pro-Sheriff slogan, broke into the secretariat building after destroying the gates.

The security operatives attached to the secretariat, who were present, watched helplessly.

Source:- dailytrustng