PDP funeral is near - APC (So is yours as you all are the same - No difference) - New Nigerian Politics (2024)

Posted by adminAll Peoples' Congress (APC), Party Politics, Peoples' Democratic Party (PDP)Sunday, August 11th, 2013

The Interim National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, Mr. Lai Mohammed, in this interview with ALLWELL OKPI, says the lingering crisis in the ruling Peoples Democratic Party is a sign that the party will soon collapse

The Peoples Democratic Party has denied being threatened by the registration of the All Progressives Congress, insisting that it will win more states in 2015. What is your reaction to this?

It does not take rocket science to know that the PDP is seriously threatened by the registration of the APC. This is a party that is in disarray; one governor suspended here, another governor is suspended there. Five of its governors are in limbo; and it cannot even hold its convention. If they are going to win the elections in 2015, why are they worried? All these show that PDP is a party that is on its way out. And APC will defeat them not only at the presidential election, but everywhere. If I were PDP, I will concentrate on rebuilding my party and solving the crisis that is destroying the party, rather than making meaningless statements. The more they talk; the more desperate people know they are. They don’t even have a National Working Committee. They should even concentrate on delivering the dividends of democracy to the people. They have wasted 14 years of our lives. We don’t want to engage in the use of abusive words, we want to engage them constructively. What is the value in the statement that ‘your party is made up of expired leaders, you won’t win elections?’ What is the policy issue there? Nigerians want to know why there is insecurity in the country; we want know why our roads are bad; we want to know why our children can’t get employment. We want to know how we can get food on our tables; shelter over our heads and they are talking about the age of politicians in APC, saying they have expired. In fact PDP has lost it completely.

Do you think PDP is not capable of resolving its current crisis?

Let them resolve it and let the world see. This crisis in PDP didn’t start today. It’s now almost two years old and it is getting worse by the day. Do you know how many committees they have set up to reconcile their members; (Tony) Anenih went round the country one time; (Alex) Ekwueme went round the country; (Bamanga) Tukur did his own; now it is (Seriake) Dickson and the other one is headed by the (Umaru) Dikko. They have too much problems.

PDP also said Nigerians would reject APC like Ondo people rejected the Action Congress of Nigeria and boasted that its candidate had more votes than the candidates of the ACN and the Congress for Progressive Change combined in the last governorship election in the state.

And so what? Is it the election that they rigged in Ondo; that even PDP is in court over? There is confusion within that party. If PDP said the election was free and fair, its candidate will not be in court challenging it. The fact that the PDP candidate, Olusola Oke, is in court has destroyed all their arguments. Nigerians want to hear meaningful things, not meaningless things. A few of them who are honest within their Board of Trustees have told them, ‘listen, our greatest threat today is APC.’ It doesn’t take rocket science to know that they are in trouble now. For us, we want the people to decide. We will run a meaningful campaign and will not get involved in all these silly arguments. From what we are doing in APC states, you will know that we are winning the hearts of Nigerians every day. Let them show us what they are doing at the national level. Can you imagine a whole government celebrating the kicking off of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway reconstruction? They don’t have shame and they said it would take four year to complete. They don’t have money; that is why it is taking up to four years. What is the engineering complexity there that will make them take four years to complete a 120km road? They should be ashamed of themselves.

Another issue that has been raised is that of lack of internal democracy. They said APC is made up of parties that are known for not conducting primaries to select their candidates.

Why was the entire National Working Committee of the PDP dissolved? Was it not because they did not conduct primaries? All our conventions were witnessed by the Independent National Electoral Commission. Don’t they have thinkers among them? Am I the one manufacturing these? What happened to Olisa Metuh and co. Why did they have to file in their resignation? Was it not because INEC said they did not conduct their elections based on their own rules and there was no internal democracy. How can they accuse us of lack of internal democracy?

PDP has said it will defeat APC and other parties at the forthcoming Anambra governorship election as a proof of its dominance. Do you agree?

I think you should ask them what position they took in the last governorship election in Anambra State. Who came first; who came second? Their candidate in the last governorship election in the state has even gone to the All Progressive Grand Alliance. I can assure you that you are still going to see wonders because they are going to do primaries for the Anambra State election soon. They will use it to settle some problems within their party. This party has lost the country completely. They should tell us why they must win in Anambra; they should show us the states where they are performing. The only PDP state where there is evidence of performance is Rivers and they are fighting the man. They can’t even tolerate success within themselves that is why we described them as a cannibalistic party. They eat their own. People are saying the Rivers State Governor (Rotimi Amaechi) is doing well, and they have waged war against him; a serious war of attrition.

But then APC was accused of starting and fuelling the Rivers crisis.

Yes, they accused us, but the First Lady came and said no, this matter started four years ago over Okirika waterfront matter. So, who is lying now?

There have been conflicting reports about PDP governors planning to abandon their party for APC. What is the situation now?

APC is like the Noah’s Ark. Troubled people will find refuge there. Don’t forget that our National Chairman recently said President Goodluck Jonathan can come to APC, if he is tired of the crisis in his party.

Do you believe the PDP governors will come to APC soon?

If you are not comfortable where you are, won’t you seek refuge in a place that is secure? Many governors in PDP are under siege by their own people. Is it APC that is waging war against Governor Amaechi of Rivers State? Or are the governors that are going round the country reporting the President and their party from the APC? I think we should all get ready to attend the funeral ceremony of PDP. It will be soon, I assure you.

-Punch

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