SDP Hijacked By Cabals Ahead Of 2019, Says Party Chieftain

Director, foreign and diaspora affairs of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Dr Godwin Duru has alleged that the party had been hijacked by cabals.

Duru, speaking with journalists on Thursday, October 18, in Abuja said he was no longer comfortable with the state of affairs in SDP.

He said in his letter of resignation to the SDP National Chairman, Chief Olu Falae, that members of the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party have turned themselves to political merchants whose objective is to manipulate the due process for undue quest for money.

Duru, who defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) along side the former national chairmanship aspirant, Professor Tunde Adeniran and former minister of information, Professor Jerry Gana, accused the party of impunity, imposition of candidates and corruption.

Duru, who said that Falae has lost control of the party, accused some members of the party’s NWC of running the SDP like a private estate.

Duru praised the conduct of PDP presidential primary in Port Harcourt where the party’s presidential candidate emerged.

He, however, said that such would not have been possible if the fresh PDP had not protested against the conduct of the December 2017 national convention.

Reacting to Duru's decision and allegations, a chieftain of the SDP, Alfa Mohammed, denied the that the party was hijacked.

Mohammed, who said he had no brief of Duru resignation as he had just returned from a journey, said that Chief Olu Falae still remain the chairman and the leadership of the party.

“Chief Olu Falae was elected the party chairman and still in charge even though we harmonised some new people into the party.

“I don’t think there is anybody that has hijacked the party. We are always at the secretariat working together and there is nothing that we do that Falae is not being carried along.” (NAN)

Meanwhile, political economist and management expert, Professor Patrick Utomi, on Monday, October 15, expressed concern that Nigerian politics if left unchecked would be in danger of being infiltrated by criminals.

Professor Utomi made the comment in Abuja at the High Level Public-Private Sector Forum, with the theme: “Democracy that Delivers.”

He said: “One of the most frustrating things about Nigeria today is that most of those in public offices don’t have the capacity for where they are. There is no talent profile to determine who should be where. Most of them don’t have the foggiest clue what it takes to provide the environment to make the country prosperous.”