Police Seal Taraba PDP Secretariat Over Leadership Tussle

Police have sealed the state secretariat of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Taraba State to avert the breakdown of law and order over the chairmanship tussle between the incumbent occupant, Abubakar Bawa and the deputy chairman, Inuwa Bakari.

While the former chairman of the party and now the state governor, Dr. Agbu Kefas, resigned the seat to contest the governorship race, Bakari, who was his deputy took over the office in acting capacity.

A few days to the expiration of the tenure of the immediate past governor Darius Ishaku, his special adviser on political matters was appointed as substantive chairman.

Bakari declared the appointment of Bawa as illegal and approached a Federal High Court sitting in Jalingo, the state capital.

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The case was dismissed by Justice Bala Usman on May 26, 2023, for lack of jurisdiction.

Two other aggrieved members of the PDP in the state, Ibrahim Abdulahi and Shamang Moses instituted a case at the Taraba State High Court, seeking to nullify the appointment of Bawa as the substantive chairman of PDP, stating that his installation (Bawa) did not follow the due process and the party’s constitution.

The state high court headed by Justice Nuhu Adi on Monday, July 17, 2023, declared the appointment of Bawa null and void.

“Inuwa Bakari shall continue to act as the chairman of the Taraba State chapter of Peoples Democratic Party in pursuant to Articles 45 (2) and (4) based on the constitution of the party,” Adi ruled

The duo of Inuwa Bakari and Bawa claimed to have court judgments allowing them to remain in office while their supporters were in fierce rivalry over the office.

The police public relations officer in the state Usman Abdullahi told LEADERSHIP that the command deployed its men to the PDP’s office to ensure law and order.

He said the command had initiated process to engage the two parties to avoid breakdown of law and order.

“We are on the matter, we can’t allow the peace of the state to be disrupted; our people are already there at the state secretariat of the PDP; we are engaging them to ensure that we arrived at amicable resolution,” he said.

LEADERSHIP check at the PDP office in Jalingo located at Barde Way discovered that it was taken over by armed security personnel while the main gate was locked.