The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has given a response to newspaper report revealing a plot to have its National Chairman, Uche Secondus removed and replaced, by Bode George.
The claim was contained in an article written by Mr Muyiwa Adeyemi, Head, Southwest Bureau of a newspaper and entitled “Southwest PDP Chairmen alleged plot to replace Secondus with George.”
The article published by the newspaper claimed that Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State was scheming to displace Secondus and replace him with Chief Bode George as the chairman of the major opposition party in Nigeria.
But responding in a statement Monday night by its national spokesman, Kola Ologbondiyan, the PDP party said it read the article with “consternation and unbelief”.
“The article, ab initio, is unprofessional, malicious, indecent, reeks of prejudicial hack writing which is capable of diminishing the long held image of The Guardian.
“The stark truth is that the article was total fabrication. The piece claims that Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo state is scheming to displace Mr Uche Secondus and make Chief Bode George the Chairman of the People’s Democratic Party.
“This is utter nonsense and falsehood. It is libelous; an outrageous fable, a reckless assassination of character sponsored with the sole aim of tarnishing the hard- earned image of Governor Seyi Makinde and Chief Olabode George.
“The article discountenances morality. It is offensive, foul and noisome. It derides facts, scoffs at the truth, mangles reality to achieve some deviously hidden goal.
“We are shocked and disappointed that this kind of yellow-journalism can be smuggled into the once hallowed pages of the newspaper without proper gate-keeping and fact checks.
“It is even more disgusting to know that Mr Adeyemi, who is based in Ibadan, failed to cross check with the governor’s office or Chief Bode George the nature of the meeting held at Agodi Government House, Ibadan on June 19th,” the party said.
Further noting that a communique was also issued and given to journalists about the theme of the meeting, the PDP wondered how the report came about.
It said, “The governor had invited the elders and stakeholders of the party in the Southwest to reposition the party and reconcile and mend the broken places. Nothing more.
“How this selfless mission of the governor somehow turns into some dark scheming to remove the party chairman befuddles the imagination.”
The PDP, therefore, asked the newspaper to urgently issue a retraction and apology for the publication.