The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) will be holding its congress for the election of state officials in Niger State on August 7, 2021.
In attendance will be the former Information Minister Professor Jerry Gana, the Governorship candidate of the party in the 2015 and 2019 Governorship elections, Umar Nasko, Tanko Beji who is seeking re-election for a second term as state chairman of the party, and Ndako Kpaki a former Secretary to the state government.
The National Working Committee of the party according to Mr. Shan has already approved the date for the Congress and the meeting consequently set up a nine-man local organizing committee headed by Khadi Kuta a former Head of Service in the state.
The stakeholders meeting also asked the two warring groups to provide three members each to serve on the committee while the Caretaker committee itself will provide the remaining three members.
The North Central Zone Vice Chairman of the Party Mr. Dakas Shan Speaking to newsmen at the end of the closed-door meeting that the meeting was successful” adding that: “We formed a quorum as provided for by our party constitution
“The meeting was all about Congress, we agreed that the Congress should go on as approved by the National Working Committee,” Shan said promising to “reach out” to those that did not attend the meeting.
” Some members of the caucus didn’t come we wonder why because notices were extended to everybody, every member of the caucus, we didn’t receive any apology from members of the caucus, well 3 apologies were received, we expected that more apologies would have been received
“The most important thing is that we had a full house, we formed a quorum of the caucus which allows us to go ahead with the meeting”
On the implication of the absence of some of the members, Shan declared: ” If they invite you to a meeting will they put a rope around your neck and drag you to the meeting venue, everybody knows the meeting venue, you have been invited, they are aware of the date, they are aware of the timing I will tell you that some of them we didn’t just send invitation we went to visit them and inform them before we arrived here yesterday”
He said that “As we leave this place we are going to get in touch with them to understand why we have not seen them in the caucus” saying that “We don’t expect them to boycott the Congress”
Shan conceded that ” There is a crack in the party which is normal in politics because people have different interests” stressing that: ” There are issues there are two groups sharply divided so there is division by no one is saying that he is leaving the party
“They are just fighting because the party is a very beautiful bride and everybody wants to see that it takes control of the bride,” Shan said.
He further noted that all efforts to speak to the leader of one of the groups and Chairmanship aspirant Muktar Ahmed were not successful because he was unable to pick his phone.
