Ali Modu Sheriff failed as party Chairman – Bode George

Former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olabode George has said the sacked National Chairman of the party, Ali Modu Sheriff failed because he was not “attuned with the rule of the game” of the party.

He said though Sheriff was brought into PDP by well meaning people, the former Borno State Governor lacked the understanding of the party, a situation that “provoked the near destructive grapple” of the PDP.

He said this while reacting to Supreme Court ruling which affirmed Ahmed Makarfi as the authentic leader of the party.

In a statement he issued titled: “The Triumph of the Righteous”, the PDP Chieftain said, while recognizing that there is no victor nor vanquished, PDP must be “eternally vigilant against those serial dissidents and reckless characters who insist on betraying the party’s trust.”

Bode George noted that the party must be guided with ground norms, rules and regulations that must be respected by all members for decorum to prevail.

He, however, warned against scheming of any sort by individual members of the party.

He said, “This is the time of purposeful reflection and rebuilding. This is the time to mend the broken places and rectify the wounds of old. This is the time to move forward with great contemplation and determined zeal.
“We must rebuild the nearly shattered fabric of our party. We must be vigilant. We must be sincere with ourselves.

“We must put aside personal ambition for selflessness and sacrifice. We must withdraw from narrow focus and move towards the broader avenue of rebuilding our party and make it more relevant to the ordinary people, the weak, the poor, the disadvantaged and all those who are presently elbowed out of the Nigerian dream.

“We must move away from greed to collective discipline. We must move away from personal satisfaction to the general good.
“We must continue to support those who remained steadfast, devoted, dogged and unshaken amid the storm and the turbulence of the last fourteen months.
“Those who brought Sheriff may be well meaning. But they forgot that to lead an organization you always need those who are tested, proven and well accustomed to the tenets and the norms of such organization.
“When you bring someone who is not well attuned to the rule of the game, the result is always disastrous. That is what provoked the near destructive grapple we just went through.”