The national chairman of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff, yesterday threatened to drag a former Information Minister, Prof. Jerry Gana, before the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Sheriff, who was reacting to the purported announcement of a 21-member steering committee to pilot the affairs of the PDP by a group – Concerned Stakeholders – led by the former minister, alleged that Gana took a N500 million loan from a second generation bank on behalf of the party without due approval from the leadership of the party.
He, however, did not state the time Gana allegedly obtained the loan.
The threat to unleash the anti-graft agency on Mr. Gana, a founding father of the PDP and member of its board of trustees, signals a dangerous twist in the internal crisis rocking the opposition party.
Addressing reporters at the party’s national secretariat in Abuja yesterday, Media Adviser to the party chairman, Mr. Inuwa Bwala said Gana lacked the credibility to criticize Sheriff and accused his group of being out “to cause mischief”.
He also said that they were come up with different gimmicks to divert attention from the effects of what they did in the past leading to the squandering of the fortunes of the party.
“Unfortunately, among such groups are self-styled elders and stakeholders led by Professor Jerry Gana. I have seen him sweating on television, playing with language but at the end of the day saying nothing.
“I want to specifically say we kept sealed lips about some of the activities of this man believing that we could still find a rendezvous at which we could work together for the progress of the PDP. I must say, and there are witnesses that this is one character that attempts to play a role in every government since the time of the military”, Mr. Bwala said.
Mr. Bwala claimed that the Gana-led ‘Concerned Stakeholders’ is alien to the PDP constitution, adding that the group is grinding an axe with Mr. Sheriff for personal reasons.
“We know the very ignoble roles that he played that led to the PDP being defeated in the last election. These were the same characters that deceived President Jonathan into failure. Unfortunately most of them still go round to ask the chairman of one favour or the other and when the chairman declines they take offence against him.
“I know as a fact that Senator Jery Gana has written to the national chairman to allow him nominate some people into certain committees or allow them perform certain functions for the party.
“Whether these requests were granted or not is immaterial. But that is perhaps one of the reasons that he has taken the position against anything this man does. This is the same man that recognized the national chairman, writing to him on the need to submit the report on the finance committee which he headed.
“The chairman has been running away from receiving that report because it is on record that the same Jerry Gana on behalf of the party without using the machinery of the party collected the sum of N500million loan from Skye bank on behalf of the PDP for which the PDP has been dragged to court and is being compelled to pay back.
“Leaders of thought in this party including some elders have prevailed on the chairman not to make this matter known and to save this man from public embarrassment. But as it is the chairman may be left with no option than to drag Jerry Gana before the EFCC to explain his role in obtaining N500 million facility on behalf of the party and let him also explain what he has done with the money”, Mr. Bwala said.
Reacting specifically to a comment attributed to a member of the Gana group and former Education Minister, Prof. Tunde Adeniran that the “PDP has been hijacked by hoodlums and gangsters”, Bwala said, “When hoodlums come to power and have a direction, vagabonds should keep quiet”.
