From Tony Osauzo and Ighomuaye Lucky, Benin
The lawmaker representing Ikpoba-Okha/Egor Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, E.J. Agbonnayinma, at the weekend said the Ali Modu Sheriff’s faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will not accept any amnesty proposed by Senator Ahmed Makarffi.
He stated this during a stakeholders meeting with party faithful in Benin City, the Edo State capital.
Agbonnayinma said amnesty could only be granted to militants and not to a man who has not committed any crime, but was called upon to serve his party.
“You can only grant amnesty to a militant or someone who committed a crime. In this case, amnesty does not arise. This is part of the impunity I am talking about.
“You are asking someone who you begged to rescue PDP when the party was down, and he came and did all that he could to save the party and you are saying you want to grant him amnesty?
“I do not like people who use people and dump them. Now, let the truth be told; Modu Sheriff is not on trial. We do not need amnesty,” he said.
Agbonnayinma said following the litigations in court, various reconciliation committees were set up, which included the Prof. Jerry Gana reconciliation committee, Governor Seriake Dickson committee and former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, and Sheriff agreed to their recommendations even when he had the upper hand as the authentic chairman of the party following the judgments from the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal.
He said Sheriff declared a policy of ‘no victor no vanquish’, adding that with reversal of the the judgment of the lower courts by the Supreme Court, one would have expected that they become team players rather than proposing amnesty, setting up disciplinary committee and dissolving the state executive.
“Rather than preaching unification, they decided to engage themselves in derogatory statements and insults on Senator Ali Modu Sheriff and his followers. I will not remain docile while the democratic norms and values we cherish are being systematically truncated and destroyed,” he said.
The lawmaker alleged that PDP was being run by a cabal to the detriment of majority of party members. He said equity, sincerity, fair play and transparency were alien in the administration of the party and alleged that the founding principles of the party have been rejected for the selfish interest of the few people who perpetrate impunity and betrayed the party.
He also lamented that despite the huge population of the people from Edo South Senatorial district, no leaders from that district were in the national body, either in the national executive council or national working committee of the party while invitations to stakeholder meetings at the national head quarters were never extended to them.