ABUJA – Kola Ologbondiyan, the immediate past National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has said that the demand by North Central Zone to complete the tenure of Senator Iyorchia Ayu, as the party National Chairman is constitutional, legitimate and in tandem with democratic tenets of equity, fair play and justice.
Ologbondiyan, who said that there is no going back on the demand by the North Central zone to produce the National Chairman, insisted that the National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting slated for Thursday, October 2024, must be held as scheduled, cautioning that the date must be sacrosanct.
Ologbondiyan, who stated this during an interface with some youths of the party from the North Central Zone, at the weekend, charged the youths not to relent in their demand.
He informed the group that the North Central Zone is enjoying the support of the various organs of the party as well as other zones because the demand is in line with the provisions of Section 47 (6) of the PDP Constitution as amended in 2017.
According to him, at no point did the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the party alter the appropriate Section of the Constitution to allow the Acting National Chairman, Ambassador Illyasu Umar Damagum, to complete the term of Senator Iyorchia Ayu.
“If there were any constitutional alteration Ambassador Iliyasu Damagum would not be holding office as Acting National Chairman but as substantive National Chairman. So even Amb. Damagum recognizes that he is not the National Chairman.
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“The fact that he is acting Chairman shows that the office of the National Chairman is vacant. It can only be filled by a person from the North Central to complete the tenure of Senator Ayu. That is what we are demanding for and there is no going back on the demand.”
Urging leaders and stakeholders of the party to stand up for the truth irrespective of interests, Ologbondiyan said the concepts of equity, fairness, and justice are universal and are not interest-based.
He further noted that the concept of zoning in the PDP has various strands, explaining that offices are first divided between the two main parts of the country, North/South.
“At this level, the offices are further redistributed, and each geo-political zone then takes what accrues to it. In the present circumstance, the North Central got the National Chairman, the North East took the Deputy National Chairman (North) while the North West got the National Organising Secretary.
“In the South, the South West got Deputy National Chairman (South), the South East had the National Secretary, while the South South had the National Woman Leader. That was why when the occupant of the National Woman Leader passed recently, the party turned to the South South to bring a replacement in line with the provisions of Section 47 (6),” he said.
He however, called on the North Central not to fall for the bullying of certain sit-tight politicians and their supporters who are out to deprive the North Central zone of its legitimate position in the Party.
