L-R: Former VP Atiku Abubakar congratulates Secondus while Senator Goodwill Akpabio looks on
By John Okoh, Ayo Kehinde and Cosmas Nkeremwem
After hours spent on speech making, accreditation of delegates and allowing the ballot papers, the Peoples Democratic Party, held its first National Convention at the Eagles Square, Abuja on Saturday since 2015.
Coming on the heels of a bitter leadership crisis that engulfed the party after it lost that year’s election to the opposition All Progressives Congress, APC, it managed to get itself together again after a series of litigation resolved the torn issues the party leaders and organs could not handle without being partisan. At the convention, many leaders and members were upbeat about the future of the party as the country enters a new politicking phase ahead of the 2019 general elections.
With the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, announcing that the Presidential and National Assembly polls would be held in February of 2019, political parties have less than two years to go for electioneering. Held against this background of thick political atmosphere, the contest for the National Executives positions of the party was charged with emotions with aspirants throwing all into the race. Expectedly, victors and aggrieved losers have emerged. At the end of the voting, Chairman of the Election Committee and former governor of Benue State, Gabriel Suswam announced Uche Seconds as winner with 2000 votes, Professor Tunde Adeniran, former Minister of Education with 200, Chief Raymond Dopes with 66 votes and Professor Taoreed Adedoja, former Minister of Sports and Special Duties, with no vote.
Below is a blow by blow account of what transpired at the venue of the convention.
The Elections Were Rigged, Cried Chief Raymond Dopkesi and Prof Tunde Adeniran
Adeniran and Dopkesi
Two Chairmanship aspirants of the Peoples Democratic Party , PDP, Chief Raymond Dokpesi and Prof. Tunde Adeniran rejected the outcome of the party’s national convention and the process that led to the emergence of the key officers.
According to Dopkesi, the whole process was a sham tailored to meet the designs of the governors. He accused them of going from room to room of the delegates to influence them with wads of Naira and then distributing to them the “Unity List” of preferred candidates.
In his own reaction Professor Tunde Adeniran who was the S/West hopeful after four other aspirants steeped down for him, said the election was less than transparent and called on the Board of Trustees of the party to conduct another election.
His Director, Media and Publicity, Taiwo Akeju, accused Governors Nyesom Wike of Rivers and Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti of being the masterminds of the unity list distributed to the delegates.
“We reject the entire electoral process. The election has been grossly compromised to achieve a predetermined end.
“The illegal unity list is prepared by governors Wike and Ayodele Fayose to foist on the entire delegates” he said.
The said ‘Unity List’
The “unity list,” that caused a row at the convention and threatens to mars its outcome is a one-page document that contained the names of allegedly anointed candidates for each position vied for.
Prince Uche Secondus (Rivers) was listed as the choice for national chairman while Elder Yemi Akinwonmi (Ogun) was listed as his deputy (South).
Ex-Senator, Gamawa Babawo Garba (Bauchi) as deputy national chairman (North). Ex- Senator, Umar Tsauri (Katsina) as candidate for the National Secretary. Agbo Emmanuel (Benue) was slated for the position of Deputy National Secretary.
Aribisala Adewale (Ekiti) as National Treasurer, with Alhaji Wada Masu (Kano) as his deputy.
Financial Secretary, Abdullahi Husseini Maibasara (Niger) with with Irona Alphonsus Gerald (Imo) as his deputy.
Col. Austin Akobundu (retd) as National Organising Secretary, while Hasan Yakubu (Nasarawa) as his deputy.
For National Publicity, Kola Ologbodiyan (Kogi) with Diran Odeyemi (Osun) as his deputy. National Legal Adviser as Emmanuel Enoidem (Akwa Ibom) with Ahmed Bello (Sokoto) as his deputy
What They said at the Convention:
PDP members Have to Be Consistent
Ex-President Goodluck Jonathan: Ours is a party with an indelible history and proven record on its tradition and we have been consistent in standing firm.
PDP is the only party that from the beginning, we have not changed our name or our identity in any form, we do not change based on election cycle. PDP is the only stable party in Nigeria.
Today is a unique day because we are going to elect leaders that will steer the activities of the party for the next general elections and we charge those that will win the election today to carry everybody along.
We plead with those who will win the elections today to carry everybody along. I charge all those that are contesting one position or the other to imbibe the PDP spirit. Politics is grassroots business. Party leaders must go to the grassroots to tell the people that the PDP will reclaim lost grounds; Let me tell all those being persecuted today to know that the persecution will expire one day
A Winning PDP Will Get Nigeria Working Again
.Abubakar
Atiku Abubakar, former Vice President: I believe in one Nigeria where all our people have equal opportunity. I believe in one Nigeria where we all share a common good. This belief inspired me and other compatriots to establish The Peoples Democratic Party on the ideals of one united nation, built on the principles of Justice, Equity and Equal Opportunity.
For the past 19 years, I have fought for these principles, even when some in the party have not:
• I fought against factionalism • I fought for our Nation’s constitution and to prevent tenure elongation
• I fought for our party’s constitution – even at the expense of being forced out of the very party that I helped found. For this is the price one must sometimes pay for democracy.
However, I never abandoned our founding principles. And, today, I am proud to say that I have returned home – home to our party.
… So my message to you today is plain and simple:
The PDP is stronger together and Nigeria is stronger together. • We, the PDP, must be the party that is the hope of the common man for the common good of the commonwealth of Nigeria
• We, the PDP, must be the party that takes power from the centre and puts it firmly in the hands of the Nigerian people • We, the PDP, must be the party that embodies the Nigerian vision, and ensures that the Nigeria of divisions never, ever happens again
So at this very important Convention let us elect the very best leaders….
• LEADERS who truly understand what it means to position the PDP as a viable and preferred alternative to the mis-governing APC!
• LEADERS who understand the urgency of restructuring to devolve more power to the states and to our people
• LEADERS who truly understand what it means to create the right environment to create jobs – especially for our youths So let’s get the PDP winning again so we can get Nigeria working again
Losers Should Accept Defeat in Dood faith
Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State pleaded with those who lost the Chairmanship position of the party to former Rivers State Cahirman Uche Seconds to be good sportsmen and defeat in good faith.
Fayose who confirmed there was a list however expressed no regrets in supporting the aspirants on the list also said he had no regrets doing so
He said, “Anyone who will contest the result of this election at the court of law is an enemy of the party. It is not good to be a bad loser. If you did not win, just take it in good faith and support the winner”
Convention good for PDP, Good for APC
Senator Goodwill Akpabio: This National Convention is good for both the PDP and the APC. It means that if we get it right we would be assisting the APC to stand up and do a similar thing so that at the end of the day we would begin to build our parties in the country, which is good for democracy. Nigerians want to have parties they can turn to as alternatives. The Convention Planning Committee decided to allow only delegates attend the convention for security reasons. There are many members who came but they are milling outside the Eagles Square. We restricted access to ensure sanity and transparency of voting. Also we were confident that the government would secure the place.
Governors Did Not Hijack Convention
Ex Governor Gabriel Suswam of Benue State, Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State, ex-Deputy Speaker, House of Reps, Emeka Ihedioha and a Benue delegate Tzeva
Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State: I am a governor, I am also a delegate ands I have a candidate to support. It has never happened in the history of PDP when you have many candidates contesting for the same position. In that case you must have winners and losers. In any case how many governors does the party have? Eleven out of 36 states in the country. Take the South west for instance, the PDP controls only Ekiti with Governor Ayo Fayose, out of the six states. The rest are controlled the APC. So in such states in other areas of the country, where does the governor come in there to hijack the process as has been alleged? So am I no longer a member and delegate of the party because I am governor?
I do not see what I said to warrant Chief Bode George to say I insulted the Yoruba race. I merely gave an answer to the question why the party did not concede the Chairmanship position to the south west, by saying that what is the strength of the PDP in the southwest. What has that got to do with the Yoruba people? He is trying to whip up sentiments. Why did he not rally the people from his zone to have a consensus candidate?. This is very unfortunate. As for the allegation that the governors have hijacked the process, it is untrue. In politics, you hear all sorts of stories. When aspirants came to ask for your support and you do not give them, you become a subject of attack.
Why I and Other S/West Aspirants Stepped Down.
Jimi Agbaje, Lagos State governorship candidate in the 2015 election: This convention is different because the thing is open. We in the S/West decided to step down for a candidate because in the S/South you had two candidates whereas in our zone we had seven. So during voting you would have one bucket for two persons vs one bucket for seven persons. When we got here we saw the realities on the ground and accepted to take a bow. It is in the spirit of sportsmanship. On Chief Bode George withdrawing from the race because of what Governor Wike said, I did listen to the governor’s interview. But after asking around, I realised that it is a matter of opinion, George is entitled to his opinion, Wike is entitled to his. As a party we have to look at the bigger picture, the picture that the PDP will come out stronger. Any way the Wike talk has created a snowball effect and the S/West now has a candidate.
S/West Needed To Put Its House in Order
Alhaja Salmot Badru, former Deputy Governor of Ogun State: I think this is a well organised convention and the S/West felt that in other not to be left out, the number of aspirants must be pruned down. We needed to put our house in order and whatever Governor Wike may have said, the truth is that we needed to package ourselves to be able to contest for the position of National Chairman of the party.
‘Any Party That Is Well Organised Can Beat APC’
Comrade Sule Lamido, ex-Governor of Jigawa State: That PDP is embarking on a revival, a reunion is an emotional thing. That you had a party that rule and gave Nigeria stability and focus for 16years, went through tough challenges and it is coming out of it together again shows that it is still a strong party that still have focus and stability. APC has been in office for over two years now, but it is not organised, focussed and united. It only knows how to harass Nigerians. Any party that is well focused, organised can beat APC. There is nothing like APC as a party.
PDP Will Emerge Stronger for 2091
Ex- Governor of Niger, Babangida Aliyu, in a goodwill message on behalf of the PDP governors at the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) National Convention said the party was ready to bounce back and give Nigerians a better and robust government that would fight corruption with hunger.
“We will live more united, stronger and ready to take over in 2019, PDP governors have done beautifully well and there is no alternative to the PDP,”
“We will ensure that agriculture becomes commercialised and mechanised. Naira has depreciated; importing any food in Nigeria will be a waste because you will not make any profit.
“Our importers are not importing food and therefore we must understand that it was not a deliberate plan; it was a plan by devaluation.”
