Sheriff, who gave the apology at a media briefing in Jalingo on Sunday, said as “a well cultured and astute politician,” he would never make any comment that would ridicule the party.
He added that it was not in his character to take issues with highly respected elders of the party, noting that he never authorised any of his aides or political associates to react to issues raised by aggrieved elders of the party.
Sheriff said the aggrieved members of the PDP reserved the right to complain about issues affecting the party which they considered inimical to the progress of the party.
He, therefore, urged any aggrieved member to bury the hatchet and join hands with the present leadership to rebuild the party and restore the confidence of Nigerians in it.
He also noted that the PDP, as the main opposition party in the country, could not afford to have a divided house and appealed to members to work for the unity of the party at all times.
Sheriff, who is a former governor of Borno State, gave the assurance that the present leadership of the party was poised to give a listening ear to all shades of opinions with a view to strengthening it to face the challenges ahead.
He said the battle for the 2019 general elections had started in earnest, adding that the party could not afford to remain divided if its desired goal must be achieved.
He said, “Under our leadership and the support and encouragement of stakeholders and supporters, the PDP will definitely bounce back in 2019.’’
Speaking his Media Aide, Mallam Inuwa Bwala, the national chairman appealed to the aggrieved members to sheathe their swords.
Bwala, who said that some governors and senators had already picked nomination form for his boss, said that Sheriff had vowed not to preside over a divided party.
He said, “The national chairman has appealed to the aggrieved members not to be angry. He has vowed to pay a visit to all of them, one after the other.
“They will not go anywhere. The party has the capacity to manage its crises. We have had bigger crises before and they were managed.
“Sheriff had begged all those whom he had offended since he assumed office about three months ago, to forgive him. He doesn’t want to lead a divided party.”
Nevertheless, Bwala said the national leadership of the party had a suspicion that the crisis was being fuelled from outside the PDP.
