Lagos State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Thursday staged a rally tagged: “Umbrella Day,” as leaders and members of the party took a walk from Fadeyi to Maryland, shutting a section of Ikorodu Expressway to express strong support for PDP Presidential Candidate in the 2023 poll, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar.
The party faithful, including former Minister of African Integration, Dr. Abimbola Ogunkelu; Chief (Mrs.) Aduke Maina, member of PDP BoT; Hon. Phillips Aivoji, Hon. Tolagbe Animashaun, Engnr. Deji Doherty, Chairman, Lagos State chapter of Presidential Campaign, Atiku- Okowa; Captain Tunji Shelle, also a member of the campaign committee; Dr. Adetokunbo Pearse, Dr. Ayodele Elegbeleye, President, National Youths and Students, among others also said the rally was to register the strong presence of the party in the state and Nigeria and their support for all the PDP candidates from the governorship to State House of Assembly.
Party leaders and members were seen flagging the PDP flags, while some others were seen on trailer trucks as they headed towards Maryland, chanting various slogans.
Addressing newsmen over the outing, Dr. Ogunkelu, who led the rally, said the umbrella, which is the symbol of PDP meant protection, assuring that the party if voted back into office in 2023 would bring the country to what it used to be and even much better than it was between 1999 and 2015.
“Come 2023, we are looking forward to our leader, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, becoming president of Nigeria. We are looking forward to our governorship candidate, Dr. Adediran popularly called Jandor becoming governor of Lagos State. We are looking forward to a rebirth of freedom and security in Nigeria,” he said.
“We have moved from being the fastest growing economy in Africa and the third fastest growing economy in the whole world to poverty capital of the world,” he lamented.
“Now, PDP is coming back, when we come back, we know what we did from 1999 when Nigeria was in debt. Right now, we are in debt, the country is in debt, we are going to work on the debt, remove it, and we are going to bring the economy back,” he assured.
Reacting to a question, the former minister said politicians were not the same, positing that two individuals were also never the same, even as he maintained that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) had ruined the country.
“Politicians are not the same, no two individuals are the same. In 2015, Nigerians wanted to change and instead of getting change, if you are Yoruba, change is ‘senji.’ So they have ruined this country,” he said.
Chief (Mrs.) Maina, who also spoke with newsmen, said the umbrella showcased the fact that PDP had a strong presence in Lagos State and Nigeria in particular and that the party was together.
According to her, the umbrella is meant to cover the people of Nigeria, protect them and shield them from hunger, even as she noted that APC had told many lies which had become obvious due to high-level poverty in the land.
“The Umbrella Day is to showcase the fact that PDP is Lagos State and Nigeria in particular and that we are together.
“Umbrella is to cover us, the umbrella is to protect us, the umbrella is to give guidance, to guide us, no more hunger, no more insecurity, no more lies.
“They have told us so many lies in the past. It is now obvious that they have not done anything for the past eight years. We can all see. We gave them the chance to rule, is this how to rule?
“You cannot eat three- square meals a day, you cannot even eat one and be satisfied, it is awkward, enough of these lies,” she stated.
Captain Tunji Shelleh, who is also a member of Atiku- Okowa Presidential Campaign Committee, in his remark, described Atiku as a man very capable of moving the country forward as a pan- Nigerian with the needed experience, just as he acknowledged his decision to ensure that his appointments in the military would be spread across the country if elected as next president of the country, come 2023 to guarantee stability.
“If appointments are not spread across geo-political zones of the country, it can portray instability, it can portray division. But these are things Atiku Abubakar wants to correct to ensure that all the regions of the country from South-East to South-South to South-West, all zones have the opportunities. That all these opportunities are evenly distributed. That one would make for a better military and a better fighting Force.
“Atiku is a unifier and has been in this business for a very long time. He is experienced, he has exposure, and he is cosmopolitan. He lives in the North, he lives in the South. He has friends in Lagos, he has friends in Maiduguri, he has friends in the East, and everybody wants him.
“And you can see the kind of outing we have today, that everybody is happy. We are celebrating 2023 already and we hope that by the time we do the elections, Atiku Abubakar will become the president of the country.
“Alhaji Atiku Abubakar has promised to ensure that there is devolution of power, which is another way of carrying out restructuring, so by doing that, he will unify the country and enable Nigeria to be united better than what it is today,” he said.
“He is mentally stable, he is intelligent, he is articulate, and that is why we are all under the umbrella today,” he added.
Also speaking, Mr. Doherty, Chairman, Presidential Campaign, Atiku- Okowa, noted that the umbrella had been there to accommodate every section of the country, and assured that the PDP government led by Atiku would unite the country immediately, come 2023.
“The PDP is going to unite the country immediately after we enter 2023. Our principal, Atiku Abubakar has already said that once the electorate elects him in 2023, Obi will work with him, Kwakwanso will work with him, Tinubu will work with him, everybody will work with him, everybody is going to be part of his government.
“It is going to be a government of National Unity and that is the first step towards bringing Boko Haram to their kneels. Once there is unity in the country, amongst others, there would be peace in the country.
“Give PDP another chance, we would correct our mistakes. I am calling on Nigerian youths, they should not to allow themselves to be hoodwinked. Let us take the mantle from APC so that there can be progress and unity in the country,” he said.
Dr. Pearse said Atiku’s Atiku’s 5- point Agenda of Unity, Security, Economy, Education and Devolution of Power, is a recipe for progress and peace in Nigeria, urging Nigerians to vote for PDP, come the 2023 General Elections.
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