SPEECH BY PRINCE UCHE SECONDUS, AG. NATIONAL CHAIRMAN, PDP AT THE 67TH
NEC MEETING OF THE PARTY, THURSDAY 15TH OCTOBER, 2015
I welcome all of us to this National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting,
the first since the conclusion of the 2015 general elections in April.
Our Party has witnessed challenging times after our disappointing loss
in the last elections. We moved from pain, despair, soul- searching and
now by the grace of the Almighty God, we have started the process of
re-building confidence in ourselves for a brighter future for the Party.
The first step pursuant to the soul searching was the gracious
resignation of the National Chairman, Ahmed Adamu Mu’azu, CON and the
Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Chief Tony Anenih, CFR as a mark of
sacrifice and good faith.
Immediately I took over as the Ag. National Chairman, the NWC
inaugurated the Ike Ekweremadu-led Post-Election Review Committee to
undertake a comprehensive evaluation of the problems of the Party with a
view to making recommendations for moving the Party forward.
In our drive to revive the Party after the elections, the National
Secretariat in conjunction with the PDP Caucus at the National Assembly
organized a Retreat in Port Harcourt for our legislators.
It was a forum, which was used to train and mobilize our legislators to
excel in our new role as the leading opposition Party. Happily, that
initiative became a huge success. Today the PDP as an opposition Party
has become the driving force in the National Assembly and our own
Senator Ike Ekweremadu is the Deputy Senate President, a feat
unprecedented in the political history of Nigeria.
The impact of the improved capacity of our communication machinery is
resonating in the body polity and we have effectively engaged the ruling
APC government constructively in the national interest.
The leadership of the Party has equally been effective in galvanizing
support for our elected officials against the inordinate ambition of the
ruling Party to take our mandates from the back door. We did it in Ekiti
where we mobilized to prevent the so-called impeachment of Gov. Ayo
Fayose. Our legal department is equally doing a wonderful job in
pursuing cases affecting our members in the election tribunals.
Also, we have successfully conducted a credible and generally accepted
Governorship primaries for Kogi and Bayelsa Governorship elections. The
processes in those two States have show-cased our resolve to engender
internal democracy and cost efficiency in our Party primaries processes.
Our Candidates going forward would not need to spend all their funds in
the primary election.
The vibrancy of our communication strategy has been able to highlight
certain abuses of the electoral act by security agencies orchestrated
against our Party’s candidates with tribunal cases. We use this
opportunity to reiterate our call on the security agencies to desist
from these abuses in the interest of the sustenance of our democratic
system.
Your Excellencies, distinguished members of NEC, we are determined to
provide Nigerians credible opposition by regularly evaluating the
policies of the ruling government.
In this regard we have called the attention of Nigerians to the
selective implementation of the ordinarily commendable anti-corruption
fight. It would be morally repugnant to target PDP members while
seemingly protecting APC members. All we are calling for is an equal and
fair treatment of all Nigerians under the law. Government should prevent
the slide of our dear country into a police state by controlling some of
the brazen acts of the security agencies against state institutions as
exemplified in the invasion of the Akwa Ibom Government House by some
officers of the DSS.
In the same vein, we call on the federal government to come out straight
with Nigerians on the state of our economy, which is gradually sliding
into recession.
It appears that the lack of an economic direction and remedial actions
from the government is having a debilitating effect on the economy –
jobs are being lost and small businesses a closing shop as a result of
the lack of constructive economic engagement from the APC government.
ROADMAP
We have come to a critical juncture in the life of our dear Party and
the NWC under my leadership is determined to drive the process of
re-invention that would ultimately return the Party’s lost glory.
Against this background, we have adopted the recommendations of the Ike
Ekweremadu Committee as a veritable road map for this process of
rejuvenation and we call on all to give it their support.
There are far reaching recommendations that touch on the soul of the
Party and her potential to re-invent itself. The highlights are as
follows:
1. Sanctity of the zoning principle of the Party
2. Biometric Membership Registration
3. Introduction of Direct Primaries (to guarantee internal democracy)
4. Reconciliation
Primarily, the NWC has already kick started the implementation of the
PDP Biometric Membership Registration which the NEC approved in 2010.
The Ekweremadu report has reiterated the importance of this policy in
opening up the Party and returning it fully to the grassroots among many
other advantages it carries.
The zoning principle enshrined in our Constitution is another
fundamental element to be pursued in this reform roadmap. In accordance
with the recommendation of the Committee, we have made a pronouncement
that the Party’s Presidential Candidate would be zoned to Northern
Nigeria for the 2019 general elections.
The NWC believes that a thorough implementation of the Roadmap is the
panacea to the challenges confronting the Party. Now that the Report is
before NEC, the process of consultation has started.
The recommendation of our elders in the BOT for the Party to hold a
National Conference as soon as feasible to continue in our efforts to
foster reconciliation and ensure adequate consultations as we move
forward.
I call on NEC to note that we have practically two months before we go
into another round of Congresses and National Convention to elect the
new set of leaders to run our Party. Accordingly, there would be regular
NEC meeting to discuss and approve the programmes and framework for the
exercise.
On behalf of the National Working Committee, I wish to put it on record
that we are humbled by the unprecedented support we have received from
the entire leadership and membership of the Party so far: Our Governors,
National Assembly Members, Party Leaders and indeed all members of our
Party have been resourceful, resilient and steadfast in their loyalty to
the party in these trying time. We say thank you and we urge that you
put more grease to your elbow so that we can finish well.
The PDP brand is still dear to the hearts of majority of Nigerians
because it still remains the only national Party that articulates the
interests of Nigerians. All we need is focus at this time and the
co-operation of all to reposition it for greater heights.
When a person chases several rats in different directions, the most
likely outcome is that none of those rats will be caught. In life, we
are often barraged with so many competing issues at the same time most
of which legitimately deserve our attention.
There is therefore the need to become more focused and united in order
to be effective in our pursuits. A sick man needs to see a good doctor
for treatment, whether he likes the idea or not.
In our Party today, the treatment we need is to implement the road map
presented to us by the IKE EKWEREMADU COMMITTEE.
May the Almighty God guide us as we re-invent our great Party and return
it to the ideals and values of our founding fathers.
Thank you.
Long live PDP!
Long Nigeria!
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