Taraba PDP distances self from Sherrif, Makarfi crisis

TARABA State chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Victor Kona has said the state chapter of the party remained neutral in the current leadership tussle at the national level, but chose to concentrate in consolidating the party’s position in the state.

Kona disclosed this to newsmen yesterday during an interactive session at the party’s secretariat in Jalingo. According to him, the party has chosen to stay neutral in the face of the crisis because taking sides with either of the factions will simply mean inviting the crisis to the state, thereby dividing the party in the state and giving the opposition a chance to operate.

“In Taraba, I can assure you that there is no crisis in the PDP. Our concern is to continue to consolidate the party’s position in the state and that is what we are doing. In the face of the crisis we won rerun elections for House of representative and Assembly seats and clear all the chairmanship seats in the just concluded local government elections,” he said.

The chairman also announced that the party had adopted the state governor, Arc. Darius Ishaku, as its sole candidate for the 2019 governorship election, adding that there was no vacancy in Taraba Government House till 2023.

While clearing the air on insinuations that members of the National Assembly had fallen apart with Governor Ishaku, the chairman said the party was firmly united and intact. “I can assure you that all these insinuations are unfounded.

The PDP in the state remains firmly united and the governor enjoys the support of the members, including those at the National Assembly, and that explains why we have continued to win in the state despite the crisis in the party at the national level,” he said.

He commended Governor Ishaku for the achievements recorded so far despite plethora of court cases that almost cost him his seat, insisting that his performance had won him an automatic ticket for 2019.