By Austin Ogwuda
Asaba— DELTA State Chairman of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Chief Peter Nwaoboshi, Tuesday, confessed that the party had been torn apart by internal wrangling, and announced the setting up of Truth and Reconciliation Committee headed by Dr. Cairo Ojougboh, to reconcile factions within the party.

He noted that lack of unity and cohesion were the bane of the party. Nwaoboshi, who addressed newsmen, at the party’s secretariat in Asaba, said nobody can scuttle the assignment of the reconciliation committee, pointing out that he was prepared to face the committee to pour out his mind.

He said: “In 1999 we formed PDP as young men without anything. But we were able to capture power in the state because there was cohesion, unity and love and we took it as a challenge and delivered the state. In the first election, we had 24 members in the Delta Assembly, but what is happening today?”

Nwaoboshi added that the state Working Committee of the party had resolved to sanction 16 members of the party, including a one-time state chairman of the party, Dr. Pius Sinebe, among others.

He said: “The state Working Committee at its meeting on August 1, considered the report of the ad hoc disciplinary committee and resolved that both Chief Terry Noah, Vice, Central; and Mr. Ben Obuh, Vice, North, should tender a written and public apology to the party; Chief Felix Anirah, Sapele, suspended for two months and Dr. Pius Sinebe, Patani to apologise to the party.”

“Take the rerun election for example. We beat our opponent with about 200,000 votes. In the last election, it was just a little bit above 100,000. So what happened between January and April? If in January we beat our opponents with 200,000 votes, what happened between  that time and April? Can any committed and responsible leadership of the party explain what happened?

“If we had 26 members in the state House of Assembly and today we have 17 members, what happened? These are the issues we must sort out. I left the party as a Secretary in a united party and I came back as the chairman of the party. I think I had served the party in all capacities. I want this party to grow and I want to leave it a better place. We should start telling ourselves the truth,” he stated.