PDP inaugurates 17-member caretaker committee for Benue

By Jude Opara, Abuja

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday inaugurated a 17-man caretaker committee to take charge of the activities of the party in Benue state for the next 90 days.
The committee was necessitated following the expiration of the tenure of the Benue state executive committee members on August 8.
Inaugurating the caretaker committee, Acting National Chairman of the PDP, Umar Damagun said the party carefully selected the members because of their track records of achievements in there different fields of endeavours.
Damagun urged the committee to ensure that peace returns to the Benue state chapter of the party, adding that it is only the people of the state that will run the party in the state.
“You have been selected based on your antecedents to run the party in Benue for the next 90 days.
“You must avoid sentiments and selfishness in your activities. We want to use you to correct the mistakes which made us to lose Benue which is a traditional PDP state.
“The committee is going there to achieve reconciliation and the progress that has been retarded in recent times.
“Every member of the party is important and I also urge you to try and reconcile among yourselves because nobody will come from outside to the run the party in your state”.
Damagun also promised to always be available for any suggestions or discussion that may come from the committee.
Also speaking, a stakeholder from the state and Senate Minority Leader, Abba Moro thanked the National Working Committee (NWC) for taking a prompt action by inaugurating the caretaker committee after the expiration of the tenure of the past state executive on August 8.
Moro appealed to the committee to be fair to all contestants that want to take place in the forthcoming Ward Congress in the state.
The former Minister of Interior also urged members of the party to ensure the return of internal party democracy because that is the only way party can return to power in the country.
“People must be allowed to choose their leaders. In those days when we allowed the people to elect their leaders, we controlled the government at the federal level, controlled almost all the states of the federation as well as the National Assembly”.
Earlier in his remarks, the National Organizing Secretary of the party, Umar Bature said the tenure of the state executive committee expired on August 8 and since nature abhors vacuum, the party decided to fill the gaps immediately.

He added that while the party in the process of organizing congress, there was a court injunction restraining the PDP from conducting the congress.

Bature further revealed that in the process of setting up the committee, there was intense pressure from different stakeholders tying to influence those that would be on the committee.

“When we wanted to put this committee together, we had a lot of pressure from different stakeholders who wanted to have their loyalists on the committee, but we as a party insisted on selecting only those they believe that will be upright in the discharge of the task ahead of them”.

He equally explained that the party carefully selected the chairman and secretary of the caretaker committee from Plateau and Enugu states respectively, while the other members were drawn from the state.

In his acceptance speech, the Chairman of the Caretaker Committee, AVM Napoleon Bali (retd) said he has a fair idea of Makurdi, the state capital especially when he was in the Air force.

He said the task will be very easy if all stakeholders follow the rules, and that they are not going there to favour or work against anybody.