The PDP delegate congress scheduled to hold yesterday in the 177 wards across the state was thrown into confusion, as thugs of one of the known pro-primary aspirants stormed the party secretariat at Ado-Ekiti local government area, unleashed mayhem on the people and carted away all electoral materials.
The delegate congress, according to chairman of the five-member PDP committee from Abuja, Alhaji Danladi Maiauduga, would elect three delegates from each of the 177 wards preparatory for the March 22, primaries.
Earlier, the youth of the party had besieged party secretariat at the Ajilosun Area of Ado Ekiti, in protest against the Delegate Congress.
The youth, who displayed placards of various inscriptions, chanted “All we are saying, no more primaries,” and declared that only consensus could save the PDP from imminent collapse in Ekiti.
The PDP chair in the local government, Hon. Kola Lawal, said they were about to distribute the materials to all the 13 wards when some thugs allegedly sponsored by a frontline aspirant pounced on them, seized the materials and destroyed some valuables.
This position was also shared by the duo of Senator Ayo Arise and Mr. Dayo Adeyeye, both of whom are governorship aspirants.
They said there was no delegate congress of whatever form.
To prevent the protest from snowballing into a full scale violence, the Police Commissioner, Mr Felix Uyanna , deployed an Armoured Personnel Carrier and Anti-riot policemen to the Secretariat to restore law and order.
Spokesman of the group, Mr Olu Ikusemilori, said it was rather disparaging and contemptuous for ex-Governor Ayodele Fayose to have held the party to ransom by insisting that primaries must be conducted against President Goodluck Jonathan’s preference for consensus.
