Zakari: PDP NWC summons Jalo over anti-Metuh commentary

The National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has summoned the party’s Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Abdullahi Jalo, to appear before it over statements credited to him in the media, where he reportedly dissociated the party from recent comments by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Olisa Metuh concerning the appointment of Mrs Amina Zakari as acting National Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The appointment of Zakari late Tuesday, June 30, by President Muhammadu Buhari at the expiration of the tenure of Prof Attahiru Jega, had attracted series of reactions by Metuh who at a press conference, the following day, Wednesday, reportedly described the development as not having followed due process, in addition to being ‘nepotic.’

The PDP spokesman also used the forum to criticise the delay in cabinet formation by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), maintaining that it showed that the party “lacks direction and focus on how to govern the country”.

The party chieftain further alleged that the new acting boss of the electoral body “is too close to the Presidency,” stressing that it would insist that Zakari states her alleged closeness to the Presidency as well as to one of the governors of the APC from the North-West.

On its part, the Presidency, through Special Adviser to the President (Media & Publicity), Mr. Femi Adeshina, in a statement, same Wednesday, described the charges as ‘nothing but falsehoods contrived by Mr Metuh to unjustly denigrate a President popularly elected by Nigerians to undo the damage done to the nation by years of PDP rule.’

Continuing, Adesina said: “Other than boring reporters at his press conference with a rehash of baseless allegations of inaction against the President, Mr Metuh clearly had nothing new to say apart from his charge of nepotism and partisanship in the appointment of the Acting INEC Chairman, which also lacks any factual foundation.

“Due Process was certainly followed in Mrs Zakari’s appointment. Mr Metuh’s spurious claims of her appointment having been influenced by ‘personal relationship with the Presidency’ and a Governor in the North-West ‘to pave the way for the APC’ at election tribunals should be disregarded by the public.

In a summons that was served Jalo, a copy of which was made available to Global Patriot Newspapers, Thursday, and signed by Prof Wale Oladipo, the party’s National Secretary, the PDP’s NWC summoned Jalo to appear before it to answer to the charge ‘of bringing the party into disrepute amongst others’.

Jalo is expected to appear at the PDP Headquarters in Abuja, on Wednesday, July 15.

“The attention of the National Working Committee has been brought to your recent unguarded utterances in some of the Nigerian newspapers.

“The NWC has therefore requested you to appear at its meeting for preliminary investigation on the charge of bringing the party into disrepute amongst others,” the summons read.