Faction drags PDP to court over dissolution of exco

The Adebayo Dayo-led executives of the Ogun State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has dragged the national executive of the political grouping to the Federal High Court, Abuja, challenging its powers to dissolve the committee.

The suit, instituted by Chief Dayo and Semiu Sodipo on behalf of themselves and the Ogun State Executive committee of the PDP, has the party, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and Elder Yemi Akinwonmi as the first, second and third defendant respectively.

The plaintiffs are also praying the court to replace Akinwonmi, who was elected Deputy National Chairman (South) of the PDP at its National Convention on December 9, with Honourable Segun Seriki.

The former National Caretaker Committee of the party, led by Senator Ahmed Makarfi, had dissolved the executives in August and replaced it with a caretaker committee.

The Dayo-led exco wants the court to determine whether the national leadership of the party has the powers to dissolve the state executive committee when its tenure has not expired.

The plaintiffs also want the court to determine whether the national headquarters of the PDP could organize congresses in Ogun State as it did on October 21 and 28 as well as November 4, 2017 with the aim of tampering with the structure of the executive committee of the 1st defendant in Ogun State led by the plaintiffs by electing and or constituting another executive committee of the 1st defendant in Ogun State when the tenure of the plaintiffs has not expired “having regard to the provisions of Articles 25(1), 47(1) of the Constitution of the PDP (as amended in 2012), Section 223 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), and the judgment of this honourable Court in Suit No: FHC/L/CS/636/2016 between Chief Adebayo Dayo & Anors Vs Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) & 5 others delivered on the 24th June, 2016.”

Dayo and his executive committee are also challenging the use of those who emerged from the congresses held in Ogun State as delegates to the National Convention of the PDP which held in Abuja on December 9, since there is a substantive judgment which recognizes the Dayo-led exco as the authentic one.

The plaintiffs asked the court to declare that “by the provisions of the Articles 25(1), 47(1) of the Constitution of the PDP (as amended in 2012), Section 223 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), and the judgment of this honourable Court in Suit No: FHC/L/CS/636/2016 between Chief Adebayo Dayo & Anors Vs Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) & 5ors delivered on the 24th June, 2016, the first defendant cannot validly dissolve the Executive Committee of the 1st defendant in Ogun State led by the plaintiffs while their tenure is still subsisting till May, 2020.”