Former Edo state Commissioner for Information, Prince Kassim Afegbua, has called for the immediate sack of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP’s) National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus.
Against the backdrop of their frosty relationship, the PDP had in May expelled Prince Kassim Afegbua who petitioned the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, (EFCC), praying the anti-graft body to investigate the financial stewardship of the Secondus.
In a statement, Sunday, Afegbua blamed Secondus leadership for series of defections of the party’s critical stakeholders to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
He warned that the ugly trend if not addressed portended doom and could lead to collapse of the party.
Afegbua stated, ”When I raised alarm two months ago about the gradual decimation of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) by the Uche Secondus leadership, many had thought I was raising dust over nothing.
“The events of the last one month and the continued defection of major PDP stakeholders to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), is a further testimony to the leadership tactlessness and spinelessness of the Secondus-led NWC of the party, he added.
The statement partly read: “It should be of urgent concern to all stakeholders and organs of the party, including the Governors’ Forum, to arrest this obvious drift which has left our dear party naked before Nigerians, home and abroad.
“There is a more compelling need to urgently call for a stakeholders’ meeting to mitigate, amongst other things, this obvious decimation of the PDP by a leadership that is utterly bereft of ideas, confused, intellectually hollow, phlegmatic and absent-mindedness in the affairs of the nation and the party.
“An opposition party that should be gaining momentum because of the leadership failures of the ruling APC, is at best losing some of her best hands across the nation, and losing the much needed momentum.
“When we thought Lagos state PDP was looking good, court judgement uprooted a forward looking leadership that ought to have added impetus to the party in the state.
“When we thought we could gain mileage in Anambra, greed and avarice have combined to ridicule the party in the state, producing two factions within 24hours to undermine a clear opportunity to win back the state.
“As if that was not enough, sheer arrogance of power in Delta state has led to the exit of Senator Nwaboshi to the ruling APC, leaving PDP with a Senator representing Delta on its platform.
“If you add salt to the injuries already inflicted, the defection of the Zamfara state governor, Bello Mutawallen to the APC brings double jeopardy to an already bad situation.
“All these portend bad omen for an opposition party that should gain maximum mileage under a system that has been run aground by the menacing incompetence of the APC-led federal government.
“We are already at the threshold of not fielding a candidate in the Anambra election if the stakeholders do not rally round to make a better impression about our preparedness.
“On a regular basis, critical stakeholders are defecting to the APC, such bile in the dish, following the untold hardship and sufferings the ruling party has wrought on the people.
“I have every cause to believe there is possibly a huge conspiracy between the Uche Secondus-led NWC and the Caretakers Committee of the APC, to keep quiet while the opposition is being plundered through defection.
“I won’t be surprised if by tomorrow Uche Secondus decides to defect to the APC for reasons that are obvious.
“As I write this, another PDP Governor from the South-East is also warming up to defect.
“Also, another PDP Governor from the North-East is warming up to defect if the right leadership is not put in place to halt this drift.
“Save PDP now before it is too late. Under Uche Secondus’s watch, three validly elected Governors of the PDP have flagrantly violated their oath by defecting to a party that never gave them ticket.
“Even when there are no crises in their respective states, the ease of their exit, tells of the crass opportunism of a leadership that is detained by gross incompetence to rally round all factors that could assuage the feelings of these stakeholders”, Afegbua stressed.
