Factional National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Kabiru Tanimu Turaki, on Thursday said he has appealed the bench warrant by the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory sitting in Maitama, issued against him.

Turaki, in a statement by his Principal Private Secretary, Ibrahim Abdulahi, however, explained that the case has nothing to do with the PDP.

The statement added that the case involved giving false information to the police in a petition Turaki wrote as a private citizen in 2022.

“The said petition was written in 2022, and the case emanating therefrom was charged to court (on Thursday), and due to his sudden hospital visitation, resulting in his absence from the court,” the statement added.

According to Abdullahi, Turaki’s lawyers had filed an application seeking to quash the charge, which ordinarily would not require his presence.

“With the issuance of the bench warrant, his lawyers have immediately filed an appeal and application for the stay of execution against the said order,” he said.

The Principal Private Secretary, however, did not rule out “external political influence” from the bench warrant, even though “this matter is completely unrelated to the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) or the contemporary issues therefrom.”

He appealed to PDP members to remain calm as Turaki’s legal team is effectively handling the situation.