Member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Board of Trustees, Chief Bode George, has faulted former Jigawa State Governor, Sule Lamido, for threatening to go to court if he is not granted access to the nomination form for the national chairman position.
During an interview on Tuesday, Chief George noted that although every PDP member, including Lamido, is entitled to seek elective office, it would be wrong to initiate legal action without first using the party’s internal conflict resolution procedures.
He warned that such a move could attract sanctions.
“This party is not owned by any individual. Before taking the party to court, you must exhaust the internal dynamics of the party. If you fail to do that, you can be punished.
“This has been part of the practice in the PDP. The fact that some leaders converge to support one person as a consensus candidate doesn’t mean others cannot compete,” he explained.
He added that, “You want to make the process seamless and non-combative. We’ve done this before, but the party has never told anyone they cannot contest. Governor Sule Lamido has the right to compete,” he said.
Chief George emphasised that Lamido is still free to buy the nomination form and contest, noting that the final choice of national chairman lies with the delegates at the convention.
“He can get the form, fill it, and appear on the convention day. We will vote. That is the practice in our party,” he added.
Lamido had earlier voiced his displeasure after visiting the PDP national headquarters in Abuja, where he claimed he was unable to obtain the form.
He said both the National Secretary, Senator Samuel Anyanwu, and the National Organising Secretary, Umar Bature, told him they were not aware of the form being available.
“I found it a little weird that the custodians of the system are also being locked out,” Lamido said, hinting that the forms were being deliberately withheld.
Regardless of the situation, Chief George maintained that Lamido must follow the party’s procedures and avoid taking internal matters to court.
The article was originally published on Politics Nigeria.
