PDP May Declare Joshua Dariye’s Seat Vacant After Defection To APC

Former Organising Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party in Plateau state, Mr. Mike Dachom, has said that the party might declare the seat of a former governor of the state, Mr. Joshua Dariye, vacant following his defection to the ruling All Progressives Congress.

Dariye was governor of Plateau State under PDP from 1999 to 2007.

Senator Joshua Dariye, representing Plateau Central, yesterday announced his defection from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Senate President Bukola Saraki read Dariye’s defection letter on the floor of the Senate.

Dariye, who moved from PDP to Labour Party, back to PDP and now APC, said his decision to leave the PDP was informed by the protracted division at the party’s national level.

“After due consultation with my constituency, I write to notify you of my intention to cross over from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC)

“My decision is informed by the protracted division at the national level of the PDP that led to the massive movement of my supporters to APC. Arising from this, I, therefore, write to formally inform you of my decision to go along with my supporters. I thank you for your understanding,” the letter read.

Dariye, before his defection, represents Plateau central senatorial zone in the Senate under the PDP. He first got to the Senate under the Labour Party in 2007, but went back to PDP in 2015.

Dachom told our correspondent in an interview in Jos on Friday that all options are on the table, including initiating his recall, stressing that the reason Dariye gave for his action is not tenable in law, “as the PDP is not in crisis.”

He argued that only the court can declare that a party is in crisis, adding that the PDP structures in the state, from the ward level where the senator came from to the state and zonal level, are very much intact.

The former organising secretary said, “The crisis that the constitution envisaged is only one that can be so declared by a court of law. Unless a court makes a definite pronouncement that a party is truly in crisis, nobody can say so, more so as the Independent National Electoral Commission was able to recognise the Ahmed Makarfi-led PDP for the Edo election.”

He said, “The party will be exploring all options, including declaring the seat vacant, because the party is not in crisis. Recall that Governor Simon Lalong’s seat was declared vacant when he was the Speaker of the House of Assembly, along with other members when they defected to the Action Congress of Nigeria from PDP.

“The same scenario is playing out and we are planning adequate response to it.”