Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Lagos State, Tunji Shelle, has been removed. He was replaced by his deputy, Kamal Olorunoje, who will operate in acting capacity. Shelle’s removal was announced yesterday at the state executive committee meeting held at the party’s secretariat in Ikeja. Reasons listed for his sack, according to the party leaders, include the failure of the party to win the presidential and governorship elections in the state; the role he played in the crisis that trailed the governorship primaries and lack of transparency in the running of the chapter.It was alleged that Shelle connived with some elders of the party to inflate the number of votes cast at the governorship primaries. The votes were more than the total number of accredited delegates that participated in the exercise. Consequently, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro one of the major contenders for the ticket, sued the party and Chief Olabode George, asking for the nullification of the primaries. It took the intervention of the Presidency before Obanikoro withdrew the case. However, only a faction took the decision to sack Shelle, a source within the party stated. As stated by hiim, the decision cannot hold In a statement by its State Publicity Secretary,Taofik Gani, the PDP called on party members to discountece the said sack. It also admonished those behind the “preposterous action” to retrace their steps and allow peace to reign in the party. “It is therefore very irrational for anyone or persons in the party to try to create acrimony by claiming that the State Chairman has not performed to warrant continuing in office” it stated. The statement also faulted the modus operandi employed by“ the detractors”, which it said contravened the provisions of the party’s constitution on the sack of a state chairman. It added: “The State Chairman is a member of National Executive Committee (NEC) and can only be removed or suspended by the consent of the NEC. “There is no NEC approval to the action. It thus stands, null and void. For the sake of clarity, Shelle remains the legitimate chairman of PDP in the state. “All dealings with the party in the state should be through him.”
