The crisis in the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Katsina State has deepened as the Dr Mustapha Inuwa-led faction went ahead with its congresses, despite an alleged Court Order.
Reacting to the development, a chieftain of the party, Alhaji Ahmed Aminu-Yar’adua, said that the exercise was not acceptable to the Sen. Yakubu Lado-led faction.
Aminu-Yar’adua said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Katsina on Saturday.
He alleged that no fewer than 7,000 of the party members were denied the right to purchase forms for the ward, local government and state congresses.
NAN reports that the Inuwa-led faction had earlier accused Lado, the former Governorship Candidate of the party in the 2023 General Elections in the state, of hijacking the process.
Aminu-Yar’adua, who was Lado’s running mate, said that the aspirants, who hoped to participate in the congresses, had petitioned the national Secretariat of PDP but regretted that nothing was done.
“Therefore we are not participating in any of the congresses, because we rejected the process due the injustice done to many of the members.
“We have taken the issue to the state High Court, seeking to restrain them from conducting the congresses.
“Our wish is that the court should stop them, so that other interested party members would be allowed to exercise their right to participate,” he said.
Also, Mustapha Shitu-Mahuta, Counsel for the faction loyal to Lado, told newsmen in an interview that they had submitted their court warrant to the party’s national Secretariat and Independent National Electoral Commission.
Shitu-Mahuta expressed surprise that the faction loyal to Inuwa went ahead with the congresses, in spite of the court issue, saying that they were going against the law.
He further said that his clients were seeking the cancellation of the congresses and restraining the other faction from conducting the exercise in the state.
The faction loyal to Inuwa, who is the former Secretary to the State Government and Director-General, Atiku Abubakar’s Presidential Campaign Organisation, conducted its Ward congress in July, while that of the local government took place on Saturday.
A NAN correspondent, who monitored the exercise, reports that it was peaceful in Rimi, Charanchi, Batagarawa, Kurfi and Katsina LGAs.
At Rimi LGA, the PDP Electoral Officer, Alhaji Tijjani-Mashasha supervised the process in the presence of INEC supervisors, police and other security operatives.
Tijjani-Mashasha, who is the PDP Caretaker Chairman, Katsina Zone, said that the party leadership in the state did not receive any Court Order stopping them from conducting the congresses.