Segun James
As the internal crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) continues, the former Deputy National Chairman, Chief Olabode George, has vowed never to dump the party.
This was as he said that the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, is daydreaming to assume that his faction has taken over the party’s structure in Lagos.
George, who still insists the PDP is the bastion of Nigeria’s democracy, stated this while addressing journalists at his Ikoyi residence, in a statement titled, ‘The Imperative of Preserving the Sanctity, Independence and Integrity of the Nigerian Judiciary’, said that whatever is happening now within the polity would never have taken place under the PDP.
The statement was an open letter to the chairman of the National Judicial Council asking the judiciary to discharge its constitutional mandate with courage over the pending PDP’s case before the court over the lingering crisis.
While answering question on the claim by Wike that his faction had taken over PDP’s structure in Lagos State, the elder statesman stated, “Wike is daydreaming, he is a young man when Atiku’s saga came, they had the G-5, the integrity group.
“I’m a trained general, I don’t go to war like a cheap man, you sit down with your tactical team.
“You see what they are doing to Oyo, you don’t play a game like that. I never knew he ‘Seyi Makinde’ was going to declare for presidential ambition and linked up with APM.
“It is like a tree, once you detach yourself, you are gone, you don’t go on your own. He is my son but he never told me about his ambition. At the national level, we didn’t say go and do it.
“A rolling stone gathers no moss, remain faithful to your creator. He has designed every stage of your life. A house built on a faulty foundation will scatter. No Nigerian can predict the future. The greatest thing I have learnt is that the enemy within is the worst,” Goerge stated.
The PDP chieftain added, “I will not wait and see the party being denigrated because the Board of Trust is the conscience of our party. We must not allow the party to die. Until I die, I will tell the truth to power.”
In the letter addressed to the Chairman of NJC, Goerge said in part, “I write as a concerned citizen, a democrat, and a member of the Board of Trustees of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), compelled by recent developments that raise serious questions about public confidence in the administration of justice and the role of the courts in safeguarding constitutional democracy.
“The matter before the court was far from frivolous. It arose from an action instituted by the Chairman and members of the Board of Trustees of the Peoples Democratic Party. The action sought to compel the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to comply with and give effect to subsisting judgements of the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal and the Federal High Court by updating its official portal to reflect the authentic faction of the Peoples Democratic Party as led by Chief Kabiru Tanimu Turaki, SAN recognised by the judgements, rather than continuing to recognise the Wike-led faction.
“Instead of first determining the substantive constitutional questions before it including whether INEC was under a legal obligation to comply with those subsisting judgments and amend its official records accordingly, the Court dismissed the action as a waste of judicial time and proceeded to award costs of N140 million against the Board of Trustees and a further N10 million against counsel.
“It is the greatest joke in the civilised international community today. Morally and ethically is it possible for a child to expel a father from his house whilst the father is still alive.
“The Wike faction said they have expelled permanent members of the upper echelon of the party, the custodians of the party. What a joke!
“Despite this absurdity, the judge concluded in his judgement that we were wasting the time of the court.
“Our constitutional order is founded upon the hierarchy of courts and the binding authority of judicial precedent. Judgements of the Supreme Court are final and binding upon all persons and authorities throughout the Federation. Equally, decisions of the Court of Appeal and other superior courts of record are not matters of discretion to be observed or ignored at will. The rule of law demands faithful obedience to subsisting judgements until they are set aside by a court of competent jurisdiction. No administrative authority, however constituted, possesses the legal authority to disregard or delay compliance with a subsisting judgement of a court of competent jurisdiction unless and until that judgement is set aside by a superior court.
“This is therefore a defining moment in the constitutional history of our nation. It calls for courage, fidelity to the judicial oath, and an unwavering commitment to the principles of justice without fear or favour, affection or ill will. The National Judicial Council must continue to demonstrate, both in action and in resolve, that the judiciary remains insulated from every form of external influence and committed solely to the dictates of the constitution and the law.
“History will not judge this moment by the silence of those entrusted with the administration of justice, but by whether they rose courageously to defend the constitution when it mattered most. The integrity of the Judiciary is not negotiable; it is the lifeblood of the Nigerian Republic.
“The Judiciary remains the last hope of the common man only so long as the common man remains convinced that justice is administered according to law, guided by the Constitution, and uninfluenced by power or expediency. The preservation of that confidence is the solemn responsibility of every judicial officer, and ultimately, of the National Judicial Council itself.
“I therefore respectfully call upon the National Judicial Council to discharge its constitutional mandate with the courage, impartiality and firmness expected of the guardian of judicial ethics and accountability. In doing so, the Council will not only preserve the honour of the Bench but also reaffirm the confidence of the Nigerian people that justice in our country remains blind to political pressure and faithful only to the Constitution and the rule of law.”
