By Pwanagba Agabus, Jos
Ahead of the October 9th, 2024 Local Government elections in Plateau State, for the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP to achieve electoral success and effective governance, fostering inclusive dialogue is essential to address the concerns arising from the party’s primaries in recently held across the State, reconciliation mechanisms will need to be robust and inclusive.
The PDP leadership should initiate dialogues that include all stakeholders especially those who feel marginalised by the primaries.
This would involve both the candidates who lost and the party members who supported them. Such dialogues should aim to acknowledge grievances, discuss them openly, and seek mutually agreeable solutions.
By doing the aforementioned, the party can prevent further alienation of these members and strengthen unity.
Also, establishing conflict resolution committees composed of neutral party members respected by all factions could help mediate disputes.
These committees can investigate allegations of manipulation or imposition during the primaries and recommend corrective measures. Ensuring transparency in their proceedings will be crucial for restoring trust.
In the area of power-sharing arrangements; the issue of favoritism or perceived imposition of candidates, the PDP could consider implementing power-sharing agreements at the local level.
This might involve giving key positions in the party’s local executive councils to representatives of the factions that lost out in the primaries, ensuring they have a stake in the upcoming elections.
Furthermore, providing a formal platform for aggrieved candidates to appeal the outcomes of the primaries could also help mitigate discontent.
If appeals are handled fairly and transparently, it can create a sense of justice and reduce the potential for defections to other parties.
In strengthening party discipline; the leadership of the party could also reinforce discipline by ensuring that all party members adhere to the decisions reached through reconciliation.
This might include setting clear expectations for behaviour during and after the reconciliation process and applying sanctions if necessary.
On grassroots engagement; members who supported various candidates can help rebuild confidence in the party’s processes.
This might involve organising town hall meetings or other forms of direct engagement where party leaders can explain the reasons for the decisions made and reassure members of their commitment to the party’s collective success.
By implementing these mechanisms, the PDP can address the internal fractures caused by the primaries and present a united front in the upcoming local government elections.
Reacting to the issues, State PDP Chairman, Chris Hassan through his Personal Assistant, Media and Protocol, Mr Kefas Simdi, noted that, “Normally in an election, you must have issues; it’s part of politics. If there are no issues, it means something is wrong somewhere. So, it’s natural to have issues, but the party has an internal mechanism to resolve them.
“We have a regulatory committee already in place; it’s just a matter of reactivating it to bring all the worried factions or aggrieved individuals together to resolve our issues. The elections have come and gone, so what we are focusing on now is for PDP to win all the 17 local governments. We have 325 councilorship seats, and we want to win all of them that’s why we are talking to ourselves.
“From the ward executives to the local government executives, the level of consensus about 95 to 98 percent shows that we have few issues to resolve. We identify where the problems are and are moving quickly to reach out to those who are aggrieved so that we can come together.
“I want to assure you that the voter turnout we are going to get in this October 9th election will be tremendous, and the APC will regret participating in the election. Party faithful should have confidence in the internal mechanisms of the party to resolved al issues.” He assured.
Meantime, leader of the APC in the State and Senator representing Plateau South Senatorial Zone, Simon Lalong says the APC is ready to participate in the upcoming Local Government elections and very optimistic of victory.
He also said the party has remained focused and strong as reflected in the last primaries where candidates emerged.
Lalong stated this recently while addressing a stakeholders meeting at the State Party Secretariat in Jos.
According to him, the party has not only sustained is strong followership but is receiving more support due to the State of affairs under the present dispensation.
He commended the party leadership for holding forth and pushing on with the reconciliation efforts that have largely addressed grievances of members at various levels.
Party Chairman Hon. Rufus Bature commended the party members for showing unity, maturity and capacity in the last Primaries where candidates emerged.
He reiterated that the Party was ready to participate in the upcoming Local Government elections and optimistic of victory as Plateau people are disappointed with the current PDP Government which has performed poorly without delivering the dividends of democracy despite the huge allocations running into billions of naira received over the past year.
However despite claims by the APC of victory in the forthcoming local government polls, the party is losing key party stalwarts to the ruling PDP in the State.
Recently, Dayyabu Garga, a two term Commissioner in the administration of the immediate past Governor of the State, Simon Lalong, has resigned his membership of the All Progressives Congress(APC).
Garga, who was commissioner in two ministries, Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs as well as Urban Development, and later became Chairman, Kanam Local Government, notified the APC in a letter to his Garga ward in Kanam.
The letter, a copy of which was made available to journalists last Sunday in Jos, didn’t state any reason as to why the leading politician dumped his former political abode.
In the letter, he thanked the APC for giving him the platform to serve in different capacities.
Garga did not state his next political destination, but a source close to him said he would move to the rival People’s Democratic Party (PDP).
However, sources close to Governor Caleb Mutfwang inform press that the Governor wants to organise a free and fair election in order to improve his outlook in the international stage.
This brings to the fore the need to reconcile grievances.
