"Knowing Buhari's Health Or Whether He Is Dead Will Make No Difference" - PDP Chairman, Makarfi

Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Ahmed Makarfi has said he would not be surprised if Ali Modu Sheriff joins the All Progressives Congress (APC).


Makarfi in a recent interview with Punch said the party hopes those who left would return.

He said;

“Remember that Sheriff came from the APC. We won’t be so surprised if he joins them. If he returns to the APC, we will also pray that those who left the PDP should return to the PDP. The equation will be balanced.”

Makrfi said he would not contest any elective position, including chairmanship of the party.

“I am not going to contest any elective position in the PDP. That has never been part of my ambition. 

“There is nothing like the imposition of candidates again. The position of the chairman is an elective position. The party members will decide who will be their next national chairman at the convention. 

To contest is a personal decision. I wouldn’t consider myself as the best to administer the PDP. The caretaker committee was an emergency response to save the party. I am happy I did my best.”

On whether the party has reached out to former president Olusegun Obasanjo since the ruling, he said;

“We cherish the legacies of former President Olusegun Obasanjo. He is a father to many of us. Whether he is in the PDP or not, we will continue to honour him and hold him in high regard. 

We will never forget his legacies and the services he rendered to this country, not just as president but as a party leader.”

Makarfi added that Buhari declaring his health status will make no difference.

“If Buhari declares his health status, what difference will it make? The fact is that there is an acting president in power, just as the constitution has provided for. He has the full powers to perform the functions and duties of the president. If Buhari chooses not to declare his health status, that is his own business. 

The only thing I have against the government is its habit of giving excuses why things don’t work. This has been a government of excuses. We tend to be gullible and follow. As far as we are concerned, Osinbajo is there to do his work. The APC is a party of all kinds of contradictions. 

Right from day one, their contradictions surfaced. There was no effective communication between the party and National Assembly members. That lack of communication is affecting the national parliament up till now. 

We hear that there are many camps within struggling to get one thing or the other. There is no cohesion, there is division. They should finish their tenure and see what happens in 2019,” he said.