Featured

Sheriff Walks Out Of PDP Stakeholders Meeting …As Jonathan Heads Fresh Reconciliation C’ttee

Published

10 years ago

April 7, 2017

The Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, yesterday walked out of the party’s stakeholders meeting organised by former President Goodluck Jonathan.
Mr. Sheriff, who got to the venue of the meeting a few minutes after Mr. Jonathan had delivered his remarks, walked out with members of his National Working Committee at about 4.15 p.m.
Some of the executive members with him were the Deputy National Chairman, Cairo Ojougboh; and the Publicity Secretary, Mikko Bernard.
Mr. Sheriff, addressing journalists before leaving, expressed displeasure for not being allowed to make the opening remarks.
“We are here for PDP stakeholders meeting and the PDP has only one national chairman, which is Ali Modu Sheriff.
“There is no PDP meeting that will take place under whatever arrangement that I will not open the session as national chairman. Today, I’m the most senior member of this party.”
Mr. Sheriff also said that he would not be party to anything outside the reconciliation report submitted to him by Governor Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa.
Asked about the way forward for the party, Mr. Sheriff said: “As the National Chairman of PDP, I will move on with the programmes initiated by Gov. Dickson.
The meeting, however, continued after Mr. Sheriff’s walk-out.
Dr. Jonathan, speaking on the outcome of the meeting, regretted what happened during the meeting.
According to him, the issues will be addressed once a committee set up comes out with its own recommendations.
Jonathan said the committee was set up to find a political solution to the party’s leadership crisis.
He said the constitution of the committee was a major outcome of a stakeholders meeting of the party’s members held on Thursday.
Mr. Jonathan, who convened the meeting, said that the committee would be chaired by him and had two weeks to submit recommendations for consideration by the stakeholders.
He said that in his absence, the committee would be chaired by former vice president, Namadi Sambo or former Senate President, David Mark.
Mr. Jonathan said that PDP leaders believed that various matters of the party before the courts would be resolved in the next few months but that the party would not surrender its powers entirely to the court.
“We will take some steps to make sure that we will keep our people together and work with all the interested parties to see how we can resolve this difference.’’
He listed members of the committee as six from the Board of Trustees – one per geo-political zone as well as six each from the two groups within the party.
Others members, according to him, are all PDP governors, Deputy President of the Senate, Senate Minority Leader, House of Representatives Minority Leader and Minority Whip.
“We will consult with both groups and take two former governors – one from the North and one from the South; two former ministers, two women, two youths – all will be one from the north and one from the South,’’ he added.
Mr. Jonathan expressed optimism that when the committee met, minor issues experienced during the stakeholders meeting would be resolved.
Earlier at the opening of the meeting, Mr. Jonathan had urged PDP leaders to make personal and general sacrifices to ensure quick resolution of the party’s problems.
He described PDP as a symbol of democracy and said that there was no sacrifice too big for anybody who believed in the party to make.
He reminded the members that the prolongation of the party’s crisis had cost them so much in election fortunes, in recent times.
“The loss of Edo and Ondo gubernatorial elections is still fresh in our memory.
“It goes without saying that we cannot afford to have a repeat of that in the forthcoming elections in Anambra, Ekiti and Osun states.’’
He, therefore, said that it was high time the members buried their hatchet, suppressed their ego and prepared to make sacrifices in the interest of PDP and the country.
The Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Walid Jubrin, urged the party leaders to embrace strategies that would regain the party’s lost glory.
A member of the party, who pleaded anonymity, said that Mr. Sheriff was not allowed to address the meeting because he insisted that the factional chairman of the caretaker committee, Ahmed Makarfi, should not be allowed to address the meeting.
Both Messrs. Sheriff and Makarfi were scheduled, in the agenda of the meeting, to deliver goodwill messages.
PDP members present include Tom Ikimi, Prince Uche Secondus, Sen. Ahmed Makarfi, Olisa Metuh, Saminu Turaki, David Jang and Adolphus Wabara.
Also present were some PDP governors, former ministers, and the BoT members.

Featured

Rivers Capable Of Delivering Massive Votes For Tinubu, Chinda, Others -Fubara …Charges APC, Rainbow Coalition To Embrace Team Work

Published

14 hours ago

November 13, 2026

The Tide

Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, has declared that the State is capable of delivering massive votes for President Bola Tinubu, the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate, Rt. Hon. Kingsley Chinda and other candidates of the Rainbow Coalition in the 2027 general elections.

Fubara, who stated this yesterday at the inauguration of the APC Presidential Campaign Council in Port Harcourt, said the surest path to victory is for the members of the Presidential Campaign Council drawn from the APC and the Rainbow Coalition to embrace the spirit of teamwork.

He said what the state was witnessing in the current political season is a repeat of the successful mobilization done in 2022 and 2023, when a large campaign council worked in unity to deliver victory for him and for President Tinubu.

He added that the present council is bigger, wider and better coordinated and should therefore achieve even better results.

He noted that the beauty of the new council is the fact that some persons who were in the opposition camp during the previous elections are now part of the team, saying their inclusion has made the task easier, provided everyone works as one team and with sincerity of purpose.

The governor thanked the Coordinator of the Presidential Campaign Council for Rivers State, Chief Nyesom Wike, and other leaders who worked tirelessly to bring the council to fruition, stressing that nothing is impossible especially when people work together for a common purpose.

He expressed optimism that with seriousness and commitment, the state would record a higher number of votes than it recorded in 2023.

Fubara, while congratulating members who made the list, appealed to those whose names were omitted not to be discouraged, as there are still sub-committees to be constituted and the list can still be updated, even as he warned against double loyalty.

He said the state has gone past the stage of division and is now looking to the future and what God holds for Rivers people, expressing confidence that with the strategy already put in place, the APC and the Rainbow Coalition would come out victorious in 2027.

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory and Coordinator of the Campaign Council, Chief Nyesom Wike, while inaugurating the Council, lauded Fubara for finding time to attend the ceremony and other engagements of the Council in spite of his busy schedules.

Wike, who is also the National Leader of the PDP/ Rainbow Coalition, reminded members of the Council that they were chosen based on their capacity to participate in the activities of the group and deliver positive results.

He charged them to work hard to win votes for the candidates of the APC and the Rainbow Coalition for the Presidential, Governorship, National Assembly as well as State House of Assembly elections next year.

He disclosed that apart from the Presidential Campaign Council and its sub-committees, the Local Government Campaign Councils will soon be inaugurated to ensure better coverage of the grassroots during the current campaign season.

Featured

RSG Floats MNET Culture Content Promo

Published

1 week ago

November 6, 2026

The Tide

The Rivers State Ministry of Culture and Tourism has floated a culture content platform in collaboration with digital television group, Multichoice.

Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Mr. Freddy Ndigbara, disclosed this after a meeting with MultiChoice Head of Content Acquisition, Don Dotun Ojon, in Port Harcourt.

He assured that content entrepreneurs and film makers would enjoy the platform by promoting culture and other contents to sell the states tourism potentials.

He said MultiChoice M-net was now open to increase its patronage for content shots on locations in Rivers State, describing the State as one that has numerous potentials for film tourism.

“We were privileged to have Don Ojon with us at the Rivers International Film Festival (RIFF) at the weekend in Bonny and he saw, first hand, the numerous sites and opportunities that are open to creatives in the State. After that, we felt it was important to deepen the conversation and he obliged. This is a cheering news for the sector in the State,” he said.

Ndigbara stated that “Rivers State has many more untold stories to tell, many more contents to reel out and the assurances from the M-net Acquisition Manager is an indication that the industry in the state will soon enjoy a new lease of life”.

The Permanent Secretary thanked Ojon for the visit and assured that creatives in the State would grap this opportunity and show the world that Rivers State is a major hub for film tourism in Nigeria.

On his part, Ojon said the visit was to discuss on ways of promoting tourism in the State using creatives and film.

Ojon said although the company has recently been acquired by canal+ France and is undergoing restructuring, he would promote the chances of Rivers State to host the MultiChoice talent factory in the State.

With Asaba, capital of Delta State, being saturated, Ojon said the next port is Rivers State, which he said is capable of building fresh crop of creatives, new locations, new story lines and concepts.

He, therefore, called for collaboration from stakeholders in the State.

Kevin Nengia

Featured

APC Presidential Campaign Storms PH, ‘Morrow

Published

1 week ago

November 6, 2026

The Tide

Barring last minute changes, the presidential campaign train of the All Progressives Congress (APC) will storm Port Harcourt, Rivers State capital, tomorrow.

This is according to a campaign timetable released by the APC Campaign Council last month.

The Tide reports that the APC presidential campaign kicked off in Kaduna on October 24 with President Bola Tinubu in attendance.

The campaign train later moved to Cross River, Gombe, Nasarawa, and Ekiti on November 2, 3, 4 and 5 respectively with the Vice President, Kashim Shettima representing the President at the rallies.

President Tinubu is personally scheduled to attend 12 states including Rivers, Kaduna, Plateau, Oyo, Borno, Enugu, Bauchi, Sokoto, Delta, Kano, Adamawa and Lagos.

The Rivers State rally, scheduled to hold at the Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium, Port Harcourt, is expected to witness a large crowd of party supporters drawn from a coalition of political parties in the State.

The party is expected to round off its presidential campaign in Lagos State on January 9, 2027.

The Tide reports that Tinubu has not visited Rivers State as President since he assumed office in May 2023. His last physical visit to the State was before his inauguration on Wednesday, May 3 – Thursday, May 4, 2023, when he was hosted by then Governor Nyesom Wike in Port Harcourt to commission the Rumuola/Rumuokwuta Flyover and the Magistrates’ Court Complex.

Tomorrow’s visit will be his first to the State since assuming office.