•Secondus gets reconciliation panel’s report
Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
Chairman of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Reconciliation Committee, Henry Seriake Dickson, has given the party a template on how to wrest power from the All Progressives Congress in 2019.
Dickson, who is also Bayelsa State governor, detailed this in the panel’s report submitted to the PDP National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus, in Abuja, yesterday.
Presenting the report at the party’s national secretariat, Dickson commended the party leadership, for setting up the committee, as well as members; for their commitment to building a viral party that can wrest power from the APC.
“We will not stop serving until we salvage our country,” said Dickson.
The governor thanked the party’s National Working Committee (NWC) for showing leadership.
According to Dickson, the committee recommended that the PDP returns the party to the people, constitute all standing committees, deliberately carve out responsibilities for women and youths, deliberately give a sense of belonging to South West leaders in the party, constantly woo those who have left the PDP to return to its fold and, above all, lead a coalition of all other (opposition) parties to win more states and form the government at the centre.
He said: ‘‘The PDP NWC and its leaders must be temperate, not join issues with ourselves and even those who have left the party.
“The manifest destiny of PDP is to lead a broad-based coalition to sack APC and, to achieve this, everybody is important and must be brought on board, because the umbrella is large enough for all.
‘‘The National Working Committee of our great party should constitute all statutory committees urgently and in the composition, women, youths and leaders should be involved in the committees.
“The South West is too strategic not to play a strategic role in PDP.
“We recommend closer interaction with the leaders of the South West; to build confidence in the region.
‘‘We believe the national convention has come and gone but we recommend that the party deliberately create positions for women in PDP because the party is the most women and youth–friendly.
“Mr. Chairman, if we do this, it will reassure our women and youths that they are the future of our party.
“There is no party as democratic as the PDP in Nigeria, but, I must concede that we are not where we should be, but, by deepening internal democracy and returning the party to the Nigerian people, the party will regain its pride of place and wrest power from the APC.”
The Bayelsa state governor is the longest serving chairman of the committee, having served in that capacity since the days of former national chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur.
Dickson said even before last December’s convention, his committee swung into action, formulating a template and laying the foundation for the committee’s work.
He also pointed out that after the convention, his committee criss-crossed the country and interacted with leaders and critical stakeholders of the party, who also raised some concerns captured in the report.
On his part, Secondus thanked Dickson and his committee for a wonderful work and pledged to implement all the recommendations of the committee.
He said the APC has become a threat to national security and declared the resolve of his leadership is to galvanise Nigerians to displace the APC.
‘‘The APC is a threat to national security. The APC-led Federal Government is broken.
“The APC has so disunited our people and Nigerians no longer trust it. Only the PDP rekindles hope; the party represents the labour of our heroes past. Only PDP can secure and keep this country united.
“That is why our emphasis is on returning the party to Nigerians, especially women and youths and I want to seize this opportunity to call on all Nigerians, including those who have left us, to return to the party.
‘‘PDP belongs to all Nigerians and our party is the only party that is not owned by an individual or a cabal.
“We shall provide level-playing field for all aspirants to actualise their ambitions unhindered.
‘‘We are ready to bend backwards to accommodate everybody; including those who have left us.
“The PDP is ready for a robust arrangement to lead other political parties to form government at all levels, to banish hunger, insecurity, nepotism and clannishness from Nigeria!
“The 2019 general election is a referendum on the survival of the country. APC and INEC will try to rig but they cannot succeed. Nigerians will resist them,” said Secondus.
Thereafter, Secondus inaugurated the Dickson-led panel as a standing committee of the party.