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The supporters of Senator Ali Modu Sheriff and Senator Ahmed Makarfi on Wednesday clashed at the National Secretariat of the Peoples Democratic Party in Abuja.
But some youths under the aegis of the Amalgamation of PDP Youth broke into the premises, and ordered all staff out of the building.
The placard-carrying protesters asked the police personnel drafted to the secretariat not to meddle.
Speaking on behalf of the group was Adeyemi Olusegun, who said that he has assumed the position of the chairman of the party and therefore asked both Mr. Markafi and National Chairman Ali Modu Sheriff to stay away from the secretariat.
After evacuating all staff in the four-story building, protesters locked up the main gate with a new padlock and handed over the key to the Board of Trustees chairman, Walid Jibrin, for safe keeping.
They promised to return tomorrow, Thursday, vowing not to allow Ali Modu Sherrif to enter the office. The controversial chairman was not in the office when the drama was going on.
While the pro-Sheriff supporters called on the PDP Governors to embrace him so as to move the party forward while the pro-Makarfi asked Sheriff to vacate the chairmanship seat having been rejected by party chieftains, including the Board of Trustees.
Recall that Sheriff on Monday stormed the party secretariat to take charge as the leader of the party.
While addressing the press, he insisted he remains the national chairman of the party, saying the exparte order granted by the Federal High Court in Port Harcourt, Rivers State restraining him from parading himself as chairman had expired.
However, the Caretaker Committee headed by Makarfi, through its spokesperson, Dayo Adeyeye, on Tuesday also addressed the press at the party secretariat, accusing Sheriff of having been contracted by the All Progressives Congress to destabilize the PDP.
