By Myke Uzendu, Abuja
National Chairman of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Dr. Iyorchia Ayu has challenged former PDP governors to reach out to their colleagues who had benefitted immensely from the party and abandoned it during its trying moments.
Ayu made the appeal during an interaction between former governors of PDP in states where the party has no control and members of the National Working Committee of the party on Tuesday at the party’s headquarters in Abuja. He thanked them for remaining in the party despite the fact that they have been out of office for a long time and more so as the party is no longer at the Presidential villa.
The chairman told them that some of the former governors that abandoned the PDP are not even happy and fulfilled in their new party. He tasked them to reach as to them as the party still look at them as prodigal son and eagerly awaiting their return.
He said, “The first task I will give you immediately is to reach out to other of your colleagues who have benefited from this party and enormously and abandoned the party.
“Where they are, we know they’re not happy. Some of them are grumbling in silence. Kindly reach out to them and bring them back home.
“We still regard them as our prodigal children. When they come we’ll receive them, and they will continue to help to build the party and you who had interacted with them in the governor’s forum and other fora are the best people who can reach out to your colleagues to bring them back home because as you can see clearly, there is only one organic political party in Nigeria and that is the People’s Democratic Party. The other ones are contraptions, basically amalgamations of different tendencies, which inevitably will fall apart” Ayu stated.
The party assured the former governors that PDP remains the only resilient party that has the capacity to withstand all odds and lead the party back to the promise land.
“The only party that will not fall apart, no matter who leaves this party is the People’s Democratic Party because it’s genuinely founded on the people and nobody owns it. We all own it. We belong to it. We’ll continue to build it until we get back to power”.
In his remarks the leader of the delegation, Sule Lamido, former governor of Jigawa state told the National Working Committee (NWC) to work assiduously to reposition the party to its winning ways insisting that Nigerians eagerly await for the party to rescue them from the mal-administration of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
“In 2023, PDP is being looked upon. If we don’t get things right in 2023 Nigeria will be in problem. A developed party is the only way in which government is formed, a party that is not properly organised, directed cannot form a good government.
“A good party platform organized, committed to Nigeria will produce a very good government. A party which is in disarray, unorganized will spell doom for Nigeria.
“Nigerians are looking forward to the PDP, to do what they did in 1999 and restore Nigeria, to restore our dignity and security, our economy and development.
“The journey towards 2023 will be very difficult, it will task your capacity, task your patience and political dexterity, but I know you have what it takes” Lamido stated.
Present at the meeting were Ibrahim Bunu former FCT Minister, Babangida Aliyu former governor of Niger State, Peter Obi former governor of Anambra State, Ibrahim Idris former govenor of Kogi State, Liyel Imoke former governor of Cross River State, Emeka Ihedioha former governor of Imo State and other party stakeholders.
