PDP asks rebel govs to come back to fold

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Friday urged members of the breakaway faction of the party to end their self-imposed exclusion in the interest of peace.In a statement issued in Abuja the National Publicity Secretary of the party, Mr. Olisa Metuh, urged the members, who recently suffered a setback in their attempt to get official backing from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), to return to the party’s fold.The aggrieved members had staged a walk out from the party’s Special National Convention on Aug. 31 with the backing of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar.The members, who include the governors of Niger, Kano, Rivers, Sokoto, Kwara, Adamawa and Jigawa states, appointed fresh officers to run the affairs of the party and later filed a case against the party`s leadership under Alhaji Bamanga Tukur.The aggrieved members had to INEC urging it not to recognise the Bamanga Tukur-led PDP, but the commission turned down the request.Friday’s statement called on the aggrieved members ‘to come back home now’ since INEC had recognised the Alhaji Bamanga Tukur-led executive as the authentic national executive of the party.The statement read in part: “The party has been kind enough to extend an olive branch to the members, they should therefore behave like a prodigal son and return to the family.“The position of INEC affirming Alhaji Bamanga Tukur as the National Chairmanship has laid to rest all issues regarding the party`s leadership.“And rejecting the demand for recognition by the aggrieved members has finally nailed the agitation of Alhaji Abubakar Baraje, who has been parading himself as the chairman of the aggrieved members,” it said.