The newly elected Benue State Working Committee members of the Peoples Democratic Party were left stranded on Friday when they arrived at the party secretariat along Otukpo Road to assume office, only to find it locked.

Three weeks ago, the immediate past governor of the state, Samuel Ortom, through his media aide, Terver Akase, stated that he had provided one of his buildings located in the High-Level area of Makurdi to the party. This followed claims by the caretaker committee members that they had been forced out of the party secretariat.

The original secretariat was donated to the party by former governor Gabriel Suswam. However, Suswam?s media aide, Mede Bartholomew, dismissed the claim that the caretaker committee had been evicted, saying there was no evidence to suggest such an occurrence.

When the new party leadership arrived at the old secretariat on Friday to receive handover notes from the caretaker committee, they found the premises locked. All efforts by the newly elected PDP Chairman, Ezekiel Adaji, to determine why the secretariat was closed were unsuccessful.

Adaji managed to reach the caretaker committee secretary by phone and was informed that the committee had also just learned that the secretariat was locked.

Speaking to journalists, Adaji said he would consult with relevant stakeholders to determine the next steps.

On Friday, the party held a state congress during which Ezekiel Adaji, a former member of the House of Representatives for the Otukpo/Ohimini federal constituency, along with other state working committee members, was elected.

The chairman of the state congress electoral committee, Alhaji Shaba Ibrahim, announced that Adaji received 2,482 votes and was declared the winner. A total of 2,910 delegates were listed, with 2,900 accredited for the state congress election.

With his victory, Adaji now heads the newly elected 27-member State Executive Committee of the party.

Other officials elected alongside the chairman include State Secretary Comrade Dan Nyikwagh, State Public Secretary Hon Tim Nyor, Youth Leader Ibya Terkimbi, and Women Leader Mrs Alice Albert, among others. They were immediately sworn in by the Caretaker Committee?s legal officer, Barr Friday Ejembi.

In his acceptance speech, Adaji expressed his gratitude for the overwhelming support from party members.

?Our state needs leadership, and my executives will not disappoint the party as we work to bring it back to power,? he said. ?We are going to hit the ground running and will reconcile all aggrieved party members by setting up a reconciliation committee immediately.? (The PUNCH)

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