I’ve not returned to PDP — Obasanjo

Samuel Awoyinfa

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo on Saturday denied the news making the rounds that he had returned to the Peoples Democratic Party.

Obasanjo in a press statement issued on his behalf at Abeokuta, a copy of which was made available to our correspondent, said the misconception that he had returned to the PDP, was fuelled by his photograph taken at the Shehu Yar’adua Centre, Abuja on Friday.

The Centre, he explained, was incidentally,  the venue of the inauguration of the PDP national convention committee.

Clearing the air on his presence at the Shehu Yar’Adua Centre, Obasanjo said he had gone there to attend an event ‘Zero Hunger Nigeria’ organised by the Commodities Association Stakeholders.

The statement added that a few minutes into the session, the attention of Obasanjo was drawn to the presence of some politicians, who later walked up to him and exchanged pleasantries.

It explained that among those who came to pay homage to Obasanjo, included Senator Ahmed Makarfi, Senator Ben Obi and a former Deputy President the Senate, Ibrahim Mantu.

The statement added that  whoever took the picture of the former president when he was leaving the  venue of the event, planned to annoy and embarrass him.

Obasanjo in the statement, said some hours after he arrived Lagos on the same day, he began to receive calls, concerning the photograph.

The former President re-affirmed that he had quit partisan politics for good, and that anybody hoping to drag him back would fail.

He said whoever believed the story of his going back to the PDP, would also believe a charade that his or her mother was not a woman.

It will be recalled that Obasanjo had on February 16, 2015 ordered that his PDP membership card be torn, indicating that he had left the party.

The statement read, “The attention of the former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo has been brought to the photonews story, which has gone viral on the social media on Friday, August 5, 2016 of his purported being ‘spotted’ at a Peoples Democratic Party event at the Shehu Musa Yar’adua Centre, Abuja.

“While ordinarily his first reaction to the news was that those behind it targeted to get him annoyed and embarrassed him, his conclusion was that he had told the world that he has quit partisan politics and that is final.

“Anybody hoping to drag him back will fail like any man feeding mice to a dead cat.”