BEVERLY HILLS, April 19, (THEWILL) – The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, ruled the country from the inception of this democracy in 1999 till May 2015 when the then president and the PDP candidate, Mr Ebele Goodluck Jonathan, lost to the incumbent President, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress.
At the height of its ruling, PDP leaders had boasted that the party will rule the country for 100 unbroken years. So the loss in 2015 shocked them to the marrow. In 2019, the party’s attempt to take over the reign of government came to naught as its candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, failed to win the election, although the result of the election generated a lot of controversy.
The party realising that to regaining control of government at the Federal level is not going to be a tea party, so immediately after the election in 2019, it started making plan for the coming election in 2023.
The first thing the party did was to set up a committee to review its performance in the 2019 presidential election and another committee to reconcile aggrieved members of the party who for one reason or the other have ditched the party. While the committee on review of 2019 election has Bauchi Governor, Bala Mohammed, as its chairman, the reconciliation committee has former Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki, as its Chairman.
The PDP NEC also appointed the party Deputy National Secretary, Dr Emmanuel Agbo, as secretary of the committee on review of 2019 election while two persons were drawn from each of the six geo-political zones to constitute the 14-man committee. Members of the committee include former governor of Jigawa State, Sule Lamido and a former Minister of Special Duties, Taminu Turaki (North West); former Speaker, House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara and Hassan Baduge (North East).
Other members are former governor of Niger State, Babangida Aliyu; Sen. Istifanus Gyang (North Central); Francis Nwaifuru and Austin Nnamani (South ast), as well as Austin Opara and Stella Omu (South East).
The committee while submitting his report in March, has recommended that the party should allow all aspirants from all parts of the country to contest for its 2023 presidential ticket.
The committee, which submitted its report to the leadership of the party said though many people think special consideration should be given to the North East and South East geo-political zones for the sake of fairness and equity; merit, rather than zonal consideration, should be adopted in the choice of the party’s presidential flag bearer. It said the two zones have had the shortest stints at the Presidency.
The committee’s recommendation, if adopted, would dash the hope of some of the members of the opposition party who had canvassed the zoning of the presidency exclusively to the south.
“In line with certain unwritten conventions of the nation’s history, many people think that for fairness and equity, the North-East and South-East geo-political zones that have had the shortest stints at the Presidency should be given special consideration in choosing the presidential flag bearer of the party for the 2023 elections,” Mohammed said.
“While we admit that this is a strong argument, we should not lose sight of the fact that Nigeria is endowed with many capable and very experienced leaders in every part of the country”, the committee said in its report.
The report on zoning by the committee even before it was discussed by the party’s NEC , received widespread condemnations most especially from the South East where the Pan- Igbo Group, Ohanaeze among others condemned the report believing that the PDP should zone the presidency to the South East as a reward for its loyalty to the party since 1999.
In response the PDP said it had yet to adopt any position on zoning ahead of the 2023 presidential elections. It said it had not taken any decision on any of the recommendations proposed by the Sen. Bala Mohammed-led PDP Committee on the Review of the 2019 elections.
The party said it immensely appreciated the overwhelming interest by majority of Nigerians in the party.
The Saraki – led PDP’s new six-man committee on National Reconciliation has as members.
Former President of the Senate and Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator Pius Ayim; former Governors Liyel Imoke (Cross River), Ibrahim Dankwambo (Gombe), and Ibrahim Shema (Katsina); as well as former House Minority Leader, Mulikat Akande.
The committee last Month met with former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo and General Ibrahim Babangida as part of its reconciliation effort.
Speaking on the visit to Obasanjo, Saraki said: “It was a very useful deliberation; we informed the former president why we are here – the purpose of the committee and that it is important, as an elder statesman,” the former Kwara governor said.
“The president is someone who has been in our party before and someone committed to the unity, to the success of this country”, he further said.
The committee has also visited former President Goodluck Jonathan in his Abuja home.
Speaking on the visit, Saraki said it was successful, saying that Jonathan pledged his commitment and support for the advancement of PDP.
He said that the committee members were at Jonathan’s residence to brief him of their mandate, plans as well as to seek his advice on how to go about it to strengthen the party, by reconciling aggrieved members.
“He gave us his views and we are very happy. He reassured all of us of his commitment to the PDP and he told us that he is still ready to offer his time, experience and resources to strengthen the party.
“That is very strong and important for us. Of course, you know there are funny issues going on but we are leaving this place very happy.
“He is also ready to work with the reconciliation committee to play his own part. That is a great step for the party,” Saraki said.
He advised those disturbing Jonathan to defect to forget the thought, saying the former president remained a PDP man.
Saraki said Jonathan’s pledge to work for the cause of the PDP was commendable.
“We spoke about what role former Presidents like him will play and he left us feeling very happy that yes, he will like to play that role in the PDP and help our committee to move forward,” he said.
The PDP’s reconciliation effort seems to have started yielding fruit as penultimate week, former presidential aspirant of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Professor Jerry Gana dumped the party and returned to the Peoples Democratic Party where he was a foundation member.
Gana lost the presidential ticket of the SDP to former Cross River State Governor Mr Donald Duke in 2018 and since then had been inactive in local and national politics.
Gana rejoined the PDP at his Busu ward in the Lavun Local Government Area of Niger state.
Speaking with THEWILL, the National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Mr Kola Ologbondiyan said aside the effort of the reconciliation committee, the successful conduct of the zonal congresses of the party is an indication that the party is getting set for the 2023 general election.
“The successful conduct of our zonal congresses despite the doomsday prediction of naysayers, further confirms that the party is united and poised for the task ahead.
“The spirit of sportsmanship and unprecedented zeal displayed by critical stakeholders and members of the party in the exercise is an unmistaken pointer that the PDP is indeed poised to take back its political dominance. Moreover, the peace and understanding that pervaded the exercise have also shown that the PDP is a party of patriotic Nigerians, who put the collective interest of our nation over all parochial consideration, in the all-important task to rescue her from the misrule of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Ologbondiyan further informed THEWILL.
Also speaking with THEWILL on the reposition effort of PDP ahead 2023, former Minister of Transport and Board of Trustee member of the party, Chief Ebenezer Babatope said the party’s effort at repositioning itself ahead of the presidential election and other elections in 2023 is on course saying the party will bounce back come 2023 .
He said “We are very, very ready. We made mistakes in the past, we have realised those mistakes and we won’t make such mistakes again because we badly paid for it. We were paid back for it, we went powers back in the country. We want the PDP to be at the head of that struggle to liberate Nigerians and we are prepared for it and if by the Grace of God we are giving back the opportunity this time around, we won’t make mistakes”
AYO ESAN, has been actively reporting and analyzing political events for different newspapers for over 18 years. He has also successfully covered national and state elections in Nigeria since the inception of this democracy in 1999.
