PDP Factions Trade Blames Over Lagos LG Polls

The two factions of the Peoples Democratic Party in Lagos State are accusing each other of stalling efforts being made to present a united front ahead of the July 22 local government elections in the state.
The Chairman of a faction of the party in the State, Segun Adewale, popularly known as Aeroland, alleged that the Moshood Salvador faction of the party was not working for the success of the party in the forthcoming election.
Adewale told NAN on Friday in Lagos that the Salvador faction, aligned to the Ahmed Makarfi-led National Caretaker Committee, had frustrated all reconciliatory efforts to present a strong showing of the PDP at the polls.
He said: “I am the authentic chairman of the PDP in the state because the court has pronounced the Ali Modu Sheriff faction, to which I belong, as the authentic national leadership.
“That is the status quo and I remain the state’s chairman except the apex court gives a contrary judgement.
“Even with that, the council polls are coming and I have made reconciliatory efforts to the Salvador’s faction so that the council can do well at the poll.”
According to him, the Salvador faction has, however, kept on frustrating the efforts.
Adewale, who contested the Alimosho Federal Constituency seat in 2011 and Lagos West Senatorial District seat in 2015, losing to Senator Olamilekan Solomon on both occasions, said his faction was, nonetheless, doing its best for the PDP to do well at the polls.
He urged the party’s supporters to remain steadfast, urging them to work relentless for the success of the party at the polls.
Reacting, the Publicity Secretary of the Salvador faction, Taofik Gani, described the allegations by Adewale as falsehood.
Gani said the Salvador group was the first to initiate a peace process ahead of the polls, but the Adewale group shunned all efforts and boycotted meetings arranged by Salvador.
He said: “If there is any faction frustrating the peace process, it is the Adewale group.
“We were the first faction to initiate a peace process and we arranged meetings at Protea Hotel to ensure we do well at the polls but the other group boycotted.
“While we were doing that, the Appeal Court pronounced the Sherrif Group, to which Adewale belongs, as the national leadership of the party, and this made the issue more problematic.
“The other group started seeing themselves as the faction with legitimacy and leverage at the party in the state; they started dictating to everybody even when the matter is at the Supreme Court.
“They invaded the secretariat with some people and forced people out. They did not have respect for us and the elders of the party and are scuttling efforts for the party to be one.”
Gani, however, said the only way forward for the party to come together and put up a strong showing at the council polls was for both parties to recognize and respect each other to achieve a common goal.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission has fixed July 22 for the poll and July 29 for runoff.