The embattled chairman of the Lagos State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party, Capt. Tunji Shelle (retd.), who was on Monday sacked by 34 members of the State Working Committee, returned to the state headquarters of the party on Tuesday.

Shelle, who was sacked by the SEC members, was accused of mismanaging campaign funds and failing to ensure a transparent primary which ultimately led to the party’s defeat.

When our correspondent visited the secretariat, armed policemen and officials of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps were on the premises, obviously to repel any attempt by the new faction of the party to take over the secretariat.

While addressing reporters, Shelle insisted that his removal was null and void as the members of the SEC did not abide by the party’s constitution. He added that they would be sanctioned for their action.

Shelle, while quoting the party’s constitution, said, “Section 59 (3) states the procedure for removing a member of my status. It states, ‘Notwithstanding any section of this constitution relating to discipline, no executive committee at any level except the National Working Committee shall entertain any question of discipline as may relate or concern a member of the National Executive Committee, president, vice president, governors, deputy governors, ministers, ambassadors, special advisers or members of the legislative houses

“By Section 31 (1), I am a member of the National Executive Committee and I have been attending meetings right so they cannot remove me. I remain the chairman of the PDP in Lagos State.”

Shelle said one of the aggrieved aspirants in the party’s governorship primary sponsored his removal.

The party primary which Mr. Jimi Agbaje won, caused a friction within the party last year as Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, and his loyalists rejected the results until President Goodluck Jonathan intervened and appointed Obanikoro as the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs.

Shelle said, “The idea to impeach me was conceived long before the party primaries took place. Efforts were made to rig the primaries and I stood my ground to prevent the illegalities. Until now, the so-called opposition within the system has not accepted defeat at the primaries.

“I tried as much as possible to curtail their excesses so that their actions would not affect our chances in the general elections and this I was able to do until yesterday (Monday) when they carried out their failed coup.

“The emergence of Agbaje as the PDP candidate was not well received by these people who did the impeachment. They were disappointed and were, at all times, finding a way to fight back. Agbaje remains the best candidate ever produced in the history of the party and I have no regrets whatsoever to have presented Agbaje and other qualified candidates for the elections.”