By EMMA AMAIZE
WARRI—There has been a crack in the South-South leader, Chief Edwin Clark’s faction of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the state.

The split became obvious, weekend, at a meeting of the faction in Warri, where the Minister of Niger Delta, Elder Godsday Orubebe, was accused by another prominent member, Mr Isa Clark, of working against the interest of the faction.

But former Minister of State for Education, Olorogun Kenneth Gbagi, an influential member of the faction said there was not split in the group and that the story was being peddled by those who want to whittle down the strength, dominion and power of Chief Clark.

A member of the Board of Trustees of Chief Edwin Clark Foundation, Dr. Mike Oberabor, however, disagreed with Gbagi, saying, it  was palpable that the Clark group had broken into two.

Gbagi, who spoke to Vanguard, yesterday, said: “There is no split in Clark’s camp. I am not aware of anybody who has any disagreement with what Chief Clark is saying in our group.

“We cannot rule out persons who have no pedigree and who are in penury and are talking of a split in Clark’s camp so as to be ingratiated by their paymasters and it is a shame for them to be carrying such rumour. It is rumour and I dismiss such rumour.

“What I can tell you is that people from Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan side are trying to poach us and one way they can do this is to claim that there is a crack. I am not aware of any crack, you can quote me.

“If anybody says there is a crack in our camp, he is disagreeing with Clark, let him come out openly and say so and we will challenge him. It is all political propaganda to whittle down the strength and dominion of Chief Clark,” he said.

The faction, in a statement at its weekend meeting had said that some members were working against the structure of E.K. Clark.