Sheriff is a Desperado, Borno APC Says

Michael Olugbode in Maiduguri

The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Borno State wednesday described the sacked National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Ali Modu Sheriff, as a desperado, who’s willing at all cost to be politically relevant in the country.

The party in a statement by its state Publicity Secretary, Makinta Zarami, alleged that Sheriff, who was a former governor of Borno State, was responsible for planting a story in some online media outfits that he is now the new zonal leader of the APC in Northeast.

Zarami said the latest action of the sacked PDP chairman cannot be tolerated any longer as he had previously planted another story in the media that he was being lobbied by the APC back into its rank.

He said Sheriff’s latest action was a clear attempt to impersonate an existing occupant of the office of the National Vice Chairman (Northeast) of the APC.

Zarami said Sheriff had been desperate for political relevance since he was sacked as PDP National Chairman by the Supreme Court and had previously planted a story in a section of the media claiming he was being lobbied by the APC to return to the party.

Zarami, in the statement, said while the state APC had earlier maintained a dignified silence, it cannot look the other way when a crime is being committed.

He said: “The party has decided to speak now that there is a new twist concerning impersonation of an APC office.”

“As it must have been observed, some media promoters of Sheriff have been using the social media to share an online story claiming that the APC National Secretariat has appointed Sheriff as the new leader of the APC in the Northeast. We consider this a clear case of impersonation, because as everyone knows, the APC has an existing national vice chairman for the Northeast otherwise called zonal vice chairman who replaced Babachir David Lawal after the office became vacant following Lawal’s appointment as SGF in 2015.

“It is disgraceful to note that whereas Sheriff has always boasted of being in the same category with Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Chief Ogbonnaya Onu, Atiku Abubakar and their likes who are national leaders of the APC, he has resorted to impersonating the office of the Northeast zonal vice chairman, all in his desperation to seek political relevance after successfully creating crisis in the PDP.

“The same Sheriff has been responsible for all media reports saying he was being lobbied by APC leaders. He is just doing everything to seek relevance. However, it should be placed on record that the state APC is not afraid of Sheriff’s coming because he is currently standing alone.
“As can be attested to, most of Sheriff’s notable political associates like Alhaji Mala Othman who had been with him for over 30 years; his personal assistant, his spokesman and other long standing friends have all left him and joined the APC before and immediately after the 2015 elections.”

The statement described the sacked PDP leader as “herdsman without cattle, and as such, his coming will be of no effect. There is virtually no one in the state politics who has not had a terrible experience with Sheriff in the past, hence he is not new to anyone in Borno State.”

The statement further said: “The APC he left is different today, if he is to return, he will not be able to hijack the party structure even in his own ward let alone the state or the Northeast region. The APC is not afraid of him, rather the party’s concern is about the impersonation and false information that is capable of confusing some party supporters in an attempt to bringing the party’s reputation into public ridicule.”