What did former Benue Gov Ortom say before disputed PDP Ibadan convention?
The immediate past Governor of Benue State and leader of the State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Samuel Ortom, stated before a faction of the party converged on Ibadan, Oyo State, for the disputed national convention that the event was an exercise in futility and would be null and void even if it held.
Chief Ortom, who spoke with reporters, said he is a law-abiding citizen and would therefore not attend the convention in Ibadan. According to him, there was an existing order from a Federal High Court in Abuja prohibiting the convention from holding. He stressed that there was no justification for Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State and the few people in his camp to act lawlessly by going ahead with the convention.
Speaking further, the former Benue State Governor noted that the convention would not be recognized, particularly since the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had also stated that it would not monitor the event. “How can you hold a national convention when the electoral body of the country isn’t going to be part of it as a result of a valid court order?” he queried.
Chief Ortom maintained that the matter was already a subject of judicial pronouncement and that any convention held in Ibadan would be unconstitutional and unacceptable to the party.
Commenting on the fate of the Ward, Local Government, and State Congresses earlier conducted under the suspended Acting National Chairman of the party, Ambassador Umar Damagum, the former Governor said the congresses were legally conducted and nothing would invalidate them.
“Damagum is an individual, so suspending him and his men won’t have any negative effect on the congresses that were held legally across the country,” Ortom said.
He further recommended a path forward for the party, stating: “Everyone must be brought together to make an input for the party to move on. But first, the Ibadan convention must be cancelled as ordered by the court,” he added.
