The National Vice Chairman of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) South-West, Dr. Eddy Olafeso, on Monday expressed optimism that the ruling of the Supreme Court over the leadership crisis in the party would help to reposition the party towards winning the 2019 general election.
Olafeso who stated this while speaking with journalists in Akure, Ondo state capital, said the judgement would serve as a platform to re-launch the party into potent political machinery.
The National Deputy Chairman said the principle of ‘no victor, no vanquish’ would be adopted to bring all party members together and to find solution to myriads of problems facing the party at the moment.
He said, “The PDP did not offend Nigerians but it is the people behind the party that needs rebranding and we must create a new consciousness in the new beginning and be responsible to our nation and that’s exactly the new leadership is all about.”
He vowed to return the party to the grassroots and winning back the south-west states for PDP in the coming elections but said this is only possible if the party is united in the region.
According to him, “We have to be united, because we are actually our own worst enemy and we have learnt a few lesson from what happened to us but I am excited that by 2019, a lot of APC states would turn to PDP.”
“For the south-west, we are committed to winning in Ekiti state, and Osun, the two elections are coming up in 2018 and from there to Oyo and the rest of the states in south west zone.”
“We are very optimistic that we might be able to pull down Lagos too because we believe that the resources available to Lagos is not commensurable with the level of development there today.
“Our vehicle to succeed is being united, talking to ourselves, ensuring that there is internal democracy and we will adhere to the principle of the party’s constitution to ensure that internal democracy is practised in the process of selecting those that will represent the party at various level.”
He however said PDP will bounce back to power in 2019 saying the ruling APC has failed to meet the expectations of the people who voted them to power saying they have failed in fulfilling their promises to the people of the country.
“There is huge vacancy in Aso Rock. It is not about the individual occupying the office but the fact that they have failed to meet the expectations of the Nigeria people. Promises have been made, promises have been broken and unfortunately life has been hard for the people.”
“There is abject poverty in the land, there is nothing like infrastructural development. Security is becoming a very ridiculous thing. We thought Boko Haram menace was over but from time to time, we hear about bombings in Bornu, kidnapping all over the land, herdsmen occupying a whole community. Flood has broken roads, the health and education sector have not fared better.”
“They have created vacancy by their own inability to fulfil their own electoral promises,” he said.