The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Thursday in Abuja said it would not sanction the Abubakar Kawu Baraje-led splinter group of the party if it returned to the party’s fold.
Mr Olisa Metuh, National Publicity Secretary of the party, stated this while briefing newsmen.
According to Metuh, the party has not filed any petition against the group in the courts.
Metuh said that no disciplinary measure was being contemplated against the group by the party’s leadership in the spirit of true reconciliation.
According to him, the party’s leadership has been meeting with the group with a view to looking at their grievances and reconciling them with the party.
Metuh said that the party was being considerate because of the contributions the group had made to the party’s development in the past.
On the petition filed against Gov. Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers, Metuh explained that it was not the party that took him to court.
Earlier, the National Chairman of the party, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, who inaugurated the seven-man committee that has two former ministers – Umaru Dikko and Ebenezer Babatope as Chairman and Vice Chairman respectively, said the committee members were selected based on their track record and love for discipline.
Tukur, who recalled the attempt by the Muhammadu Buhari military junta to smuggle Dikko in a crate from London to Nigeria, said the attempt was because the military felt Dikko was championing the cause of democracy even outside the shores of the country.
Tukur added that the choice of Dikko as chairman, whose state of health had delayed the inauguration of the committee before now, was informed by his readiness to defend democracy.
“You were chosen for this important committee based on your past record and love for democracy. The members were well selected and they cannot be bought,” he stated.
