“Attacking fellow elder statesmen does not portray Mr. Obasanjo as a true democrat"

Bamanga Tukur, the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, has reacted to the former President Olusegun Obasanjo's letter to the incumbent President Goodluck Jonathan.

In the statement issued by Mr. Tukur's Special Assistant on Media, Oliver Okpala, Tukur says attacking fellow elder statesmen does not portray Mr. Obasanjo as a true democrat.

"Dr. Tukur as the national chairman and one of the founding fathers of the party can never allow his opinion or decisions to be tele guided by an external force as a principled administrator and seasoned politician," the statement read.

Mr. Tukur described Obasanjo's letter as an "attack on the personal integrity and credibility of Dr. Tukur as an outstanding statesman of international repute.”

It will be recalled that in the 18-page letter dated December 2, 2013, and addressed to President Jonathan, Mr. Obasanjo accused the President of using Mr. Tukur to cause multiple crises and divide the ranks of the party.

"It would be unfair to continue to level full blame on the Chairman [Tukur] for all that goes wrong with the party,” Obasanjo wrote. "The chairman is playing the tune dictated by the paymaster [Jonathan]. But the paymaster is acting for a definite purpose for which deceit and deception seem to be the major ingredients."

Mr. Tukur, in response, said it is "most unfortunate" that the former President labelled him as "Jonathan's stooge".

"For such a statement against the person of the national chairman of the PDP to come from Chief Obasanjo, a former head of states and President is most unfortunate," Mr. Tukur said.

"Chief Obasanjo, in his position as former President under the PDP platform, should have known very well the Constitution of the party, the party manifestos as it relates to the independence of the PDP National Working Committee.

"For him to insinuate that the President is using the national chairman to cause multiple problems for the party doesn't in any way portray him as a true democrat," Tukur concluded.