The reconciliation efforts of the PDP in the South-West failed because one of the factions did not regard the Tukur-led committee as an impartial arbiter.
The PDP National Working Committee had on March 15 held a truce meeting with its South-West chapter in Ibadan, Oyo State.
The battle for the soul of the party in the zone is between a group loyal to former President OlusegunObasanjo and another which is against the former president.
The PDP in the South-West has been crises-ridden since the sacking of a former Osun State Governor, Prince OlagunsoyeOyinlola, as the party’s national secretary.
Barely a month after Oyinlola was removed, the PDP National Auditor, Chief Bode Mustapha and the National Vice-Chairman, Mr. Segun Oni, were also removed from their offices.
Oyinlola, Mustapha and Oni are regarded as Obasanjo’s loyalists.
The Dipo Odunjirin-led executive of the Ogun State chapter of the party which is said to be supported by Obasanjo, was also removed and replaced by a group loyal to a PDP chieftain, Chief Buruji Kashamu, and led by Bayo Dayo.
A chieftain of the party, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said there was no way the Ibadan meeting could be regarded as reconciliatory.
He said, “If you look at the list of people at the Ibadan meeting, most of them are those who think they can further their political interest by trying to pull down Obasanjo. But they will fail.
“Besides, the national chairman had right from the outset shown that he is against Obasanjo’s men.”
When contacted, a former deputy governorship candidate in Ogun State, Mr. Tunde Oladunjoye, said the Obasanjo group was not invited to the meeting.
He said, “We were not invited. I am not sure if the former President was invited to the meeting or not; but I am aware that he was not in the country then.
“Even, if we were invited, we would not have gone because the so-called caretaker committee of the party in the South-West is illegal.”
A caretaker committee to replace the Oni-led executive of the party in the zone was inaugurated by Tukur last month.
But Oladunjoye describing the caretaker committee as illegal, saying, “There is already an existing court process, which has been served on Alhaji Tukur. The process says that the committee should refrain from parading itself as the caretaker committee or the executive of the South-West PDP.
“Since this court process has been served, it is expected that nobody should do anything to worsen the existing case.
“Again, if the quality of the audience at the Ibadan meeting is to be used to assess the fortunes of the PDP in South-West today, that means it is a total failure.”
But the National Publicity Secretary of the party, Chief OlisaMetuh, debunked the allegation that former governors of the party were not in attendance.
According to him, Agagu, Fayose and IsiakaAdeleke(Osun) were in attendance.
He said, “Former governors were in attendance, yet people are saying the tour was a failure. That is not correct.
On why Obasanjo was not in attendance, Metuh said the former President was not known to be attending zonal meetings.
“Chief Obasanjo has never attended zonal meetings of the PDP, except once in the 14 years history of the party,” he added.