TheCable

Doyin Okupe, former special adviser to former President Goodluck Jonathan, says Ali Modu Sheriff, national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), is a wrong candidate for the job.

Modu Sheriff, a former Borno state governor, emerged national chairman of the PDP on Tuesday, but Okupe sees his emergence as another proof of the party’s “history of making grave errors in judgement”.

Although he reiterated his decision never to leave the party, Okupe said that he would “tarry by the graveside” should the masters of PDP succeed in killing the party.

Reacting to the development on his Facebook page, he wrote: “The capability of our party, the PDP and its leadership to make grave errors of judgement is legendary. What is intriguing is that even out of power that tendency seems unabating.

“Alhaji Ali Sheriff is a longstanding political associate of mine and a very adroit and astute politician of perhaps a sublime class. But for the post of the national chairman of the PDP, he is a wrong candidate and also coming in at a wrong time.

“According to many of his proponents, his strong point is that being a man of great financial resources, he will be favourably disposed to funding the activities of the party easily. But the antagonists believe that he is bringing along with his wealth a crushing weight of burden capable of fatally destroying the few strands of moral fibres on which a rejuvenation will depend on.

“For a morosed and severely prostrate political party, thanks to the overwhelming and effective propaganda machinery of the (opposition) party in power, this may yet be the mortal wound that may cause the eventual haemorrhage of its long perplexed followership.”

Highlighting the problems of the party, Okupe, an aspirant in the 2003 governorship election in Ogun state, said: “The present crop of leadership of the PDP have not fared well. Impunity, presumptive reasoning, highly stratified and restrictive consultative processes, absolute lack of inclusiveness, mercantilism, group conceit with a resultant total disconnect with the main stake-holders and the followership are some of the florrid signs and symptoms of the terminal disease that is killing this erstwhile great party.

“Some of us have vowed not to leave the party. We still will not leave the party. Better still in spite of the present situation of things we will continue to engage all who care to listen and deepen consultation across the country seeking help from everyone ready to help to revive this severely challenged sickened giant.

“But if it is the divine will of God that our present masters must kill PDP, then by the grace of God we shall yet tarry at the graveside to bid it farewell.”