SDP Chairmen Read Fresh Riot Act To El-Rufai, Other New Members The Forum of Social Democratic Party Chairmen on Thursday cautioned former Kaduna Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, as well as new and prospective members, to remained by the party’s type and desist from seeking to vary the party leadership or its vegetating structure.
Lagos SDP chairman, Femi Olaniyi, revealed this at the press conference in Abuja on Thursday, with 25 members in attendance.
The state leaders further gave the National Chairman of the SDP, Shehu Gabam, the National Secretary, Dr Olu Agunloye and all the members of the party’s National Working Committee a vote of confidence, announcing they have not failed in their respective duties.
Round Table Online discloses that a gale of defection by politicians from the All Progressives Congress, Peoples Democratic Party, Labour Party and Peoples Redemption Party in the concluding two months.
This also trended:
Aside from El-Rufai, a renowned entertainer and former member of the APC Presidential Campaign Council, Obinna Simon, popularly known as MC Tagwaye as well as a few ex-governorship candidates of the PRP such as Emiyare Etete (Rivers), Chris Agu (Enugu), Anthony Umeh (Anambra) and Abdulkareem Mustapha (Kwara) have likewise defected to the SDP.
But, according to Olaniyi, with or without an influx of new converts, they are not seeking to diverge the leadership of the party or alter its logo and manifesto.
He revealed, “We warmly welcome the influx of new members to our party, containing prominent politicians from across the country, and we are committed to collaborating with them to ensure victory in upcoming elections. We acknowledge that a few structural adjustments may be necessary to accommodate them.
“However, inborn issues such as alternates to the party’s name, logo, insignia, slogan, or any drastic alterations to the party’s type or manifesto must not be undertaken lightly. Any such alternates should be thoroughly conferred in the crowd of NEC members before any action is taken.
“Our democratically voted structures of the SDP at the state and national levels must not be truncated or dissolved to appease new joiners or at the whims of any individuals or interests. Elected officials should be allowed to serve out their terms.”
According to Olaniyi, new members must be admitted and registered through the SDP internal structures, led by the state chairmen, with a warning that they are not mandated to register or solely say themselves as members of the party.
When asked if they are scared of El-Rufai and other heavyweights coming into the SDP and hijacking the party, the Lagos party chairman disclosed that they are more concerned about certain impostors creating uproar in the party.
“We are not afraid anybody will hijack our party. We are welcoming the influence of new members into the party. But we don’t require those manipulators, preeminently from APC, PDP or Labour Party, to do a kangaroo registration for them.
“We acknowledge that a few structural right adjustment may be necessary. So we are going to harmonize and see how we can go about it. If you are bringing 30,000 people to my 40,000 structure, I cannot expect to have the chairman and secretary.
“But we must go with it in a very rightful manner and allow the internal mechanism to decide the situation.”
His sentiment was shared by Plateau SDP chairman, Abubakar Dogara.
Dogara stated it is pertinent to read the scramble act and allow new and prospective members to know that the party already has a structure and quality that must strictly be sticked to.
He furthermore emphasised the need to ensure new members register directly at the ward level.
“This is why we are directing them to each of our party secretaries in all the 36 states and the FCT in line with our national chairman directives to go and register under the respective chairmen, whose phone numbers in each state will be provided.
“The party quality is likewise very clear about the registration of SDP members. Whenever someone is interested in uniting with the SDP, the leading thing to do is to go back to his electoral ward and meet the ward chairman.
“The ward chairman will now register him into the registration booklet of the party and issue him a membership card of the party. That is the leading procedure provided in the constitution.”
Category: World-News
Tag: SDP Chairmen Read Fresh Riot Act To ElRufai Other New Members
Written by Author
Published 4/3/2025