Sack of Oyinlola: Confusion in PDP

•Deputy may take over secretariat today
From: TAIWO AMODU, ABUJA
This is not the best of times for the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), as those running the affairs at Wadata Plaza,  the party national secretariat in Abuja are set to the return to the trenches, today, four days after President Goodluck Jonathan’s admonition that they should sheathe their swords and allow peace to reign.
Findings revealed that the Deputy National Secretary, Mr. Solomon Onwe, a lawyer,  is set to assume office today as acting National Secretary.   His reason to assume the position in acting capacity  was premised on last Friday’s court pronouncement which removed  the former Osun State governor, Prince Olagunsoye, as National Secretary of the party. A Federal High Court in Abuja  had ordered Prince Oyinlola to vacate the position.
Delivering judgment, Justice Abdul Kafarati held that the election of  Oyinlola to the position was a “flagrant violation of two court orders.’’ Kafarati said that evidence existed before the court that two orders from a court in Lagos, dated April 12, 2012 and May 2, 2012 stopped the conduct of congress that made Oyinlola the South-West candidate for the post. “The court is convinced that those orders were given based on the pendency of a suit against the nomination of the second respondent (Oyinlola) to vie for the position.
“The action of those officials who went ahead to conduct the congress was criminal and against the rule of law and they could have been committed to prison. Oyinlola is to immediately stop parading himself as the National Secretary of the PDP,’’ he said. The embattled former governor had appealed and also applied for a stay of execution of the judgment shortly after it was delivered. But a Daily Sun source disclosed that  Onwe was being emboldened  to assume office as acting National Secretary by pro-Bamanga Tukur forces.
The source cited section 45 subsection 3 of the PDP 2012 constitution as amended to back up his submission that statutorily, Prince Oyinlola should vacate the office as National Secretary. But checks revealed that the party’s 2012 constitution being flaunted has not been ratified by the highest organ, the PDP National Executive Committee (NEC).
At its last NEC  meeting, members of the committee were advised to take home the new constitution and come back with their  observations at the next NEC  meeting before ratification of the document. Speaking with Daily Sun on phone ,  the PDP National Legal Adviser, Mr.  Victor Kwon, denied any plan to install Onwe as acting National Secretary. ‘’Wait until tomorrow[ today] first.  That is speculative; why not wait for tomorrow?’ Kwon told us.