Following his failure to stop the national convention of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) at the Appeal Court in Port Harcourt, the suspended National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Prince Uche Secondus, has announced his move to appeal the ruling.
Secondus, who said that he has just been briefed of the ruling of the Court of Appeal, dismissing his motion to halt the National Convention of the party, added that he respect the position of the court even though he disagreed totally with it.
Secondus, in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media, Ike Abonyi said, “even as the substantive case is still pending at the Court of Appeal I have instructed my lawyers to study the ruling with a view to appealing it immediately as no abuse of the constitution of our dear party should be allowed to stand.
“The issue is not about Prince Uche Secondus but about the sanctity of our party constitution and core democratic principles of justice and rule of law not only in PDP but in our democracy. No impunity must be condoned.
“I will therefore wish to emphasis the fact that I did not take the party to court and would not have done that.
“As a foundation member of this party who has served at various levels, State Chairman, Chairman of state Chairmen, National Organizing Secretary, Deputy National Chairman, Acting National Chairman and now National Chairman, am very much abreast with the workings of the party. I have been a witness to how much harm litigations have done to our party in the past and as a result I have been a strong advocate against settling issues in courts.
“This was why I resisted and rejected entreaties of those who wanted me to go to court to halt these forces when it was obvious that they were determined to disrupt my leadership and truncate my tenure in office with the sole objective of hijacking the party for their selfish ulterior motives.
“To allow this travesty to stand is to reduce our beloved party to a level where anybody can wake up over night and remove officers against the proscribed constitutional process and the National Chairman for that matter. And purporting to use the judiciary through an experte order to legitimize same.
“As a major practitioner in our democracy, I am duty bound to protect and defend the sanctity of the provisions of our constitution of which am the custodian.
“I wish to therefore at this juncture thank and appreciate leaders and other stakeholders of our party who have called in to express their concerns on this matter and appeal for the understanding of all.
“If those who orchestrated and fostered this avoidable crisis had listened to wise counsel of party leaders and elders who advised the withdrawal of cases, this situation would have been avoidable. I wish the party well as always.”
Reacting to the trashing of Secondus at the Appellate Court, Governor Nyesom Wike described him (Secondus), as an enemy of the opposition party stressing that no individual can derail the party’s mission to rescue Nigeria.
The Governor’s Special Assistant on Media, Kevin Ebiri, quoted Wike as saying that Secondus’ attempt to scuttle the PDP national convention makes him an enemy of the party.
Wike reportedly said Secondus attempted to stand in the way of the PDP that is resolved to end the “poor leadership” of the All Progressives Congress(APC) led federal government.
“What Secondus is doing is to sabotage the efforts of Nigerians, the efforts of PDP from rescuing this country from the hand of the party that has failed the country. And it is not fair”
“This is a party that has given you everything and there’s nothing wrong in making sacrifice. Even if, assuming though not conceding, that anything was wrong, we expected that having achieved what you have achieved in your life from this party, there is nothing wrong in making sacrifice.
“If you make sacrifice for the party, you’re making sacrifice for Nigerians. If PDP is not there, which other party is ready to rescue Nigeria?” Wike was quoted to have said.
He stressed that the Court of Appeal did not only dismiss the application of Secondus, but also ordered that the PDP National convention be conducted unrestrained.
“Our constitution provides that if a national chairman is removed, the deputy national chairman from that zone will immediately be the chairman or acting chairman as the case may be.”
“And so, when Secondus was removed, he handed over to the acting national chairman now. So, the act has already been done, completed. So, what will the court say when someone is already acting and supervising that office.”
According to the statement, PDP convention on Saturday 30th and Sunday 31st October 2021 will be one of the best that has ever been conducted.
He asserted that Nigerians are expecting PDP to come out of the convention more united.
“Nigeria is in problem and we cannot do it alone. We require everybody to work with us, collectively and see how this country can be rescued.
“Nigerians are not happy with the ruling party, the way Nigerians are being treated. Like I’ve told everybody that there is nothing better than making sacrifice for the interest of the country.
“PDP is the only platform, and which it is today as the only opposition party that will rescue Nigeria,” he said.
