The national leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has met with feuding stakeholders of the party from Ekiti state with a call on them to unite and focus on the big picture as winning the forthcoming gubernatorial election will be the first step in the main opposition party’s scheme to rescue and rebuild the country.
The PDP National Chairman, Dr. Iyorchia Ayu, made the plea on Monday at the national secretariat of the party in Abuja at a meeting attended by principal actors in the ongoing Ekiti State chapter feud including former Governors Ayo Fayose and Segun Oni, as well as Senator Biodun Olujimi.
The meeting was also attended by the Chairman of the PDP Governors Forum and Sokoto State governor, Aminu Tambuwal. members of the National Working Committee of the party and other party chieftains.
The party boss told them that it does not matter which group produces the governor, noting that as long as the PDP wins the state, there will be something for everybody and every community.
Ayu maintained that the agitation in the state chapter of the PDP does not translate into a crisis but asign that the party is strong and a winning platform for the coming election.
He expressed delight that despite all that had been said about the agitation, it had been peaceful and had not given the party leadership the cause to worry.
Ayu said all party members must work together to ensure the victory of the party at the polls and focus on the effort not only to win Ekiti but also many other states and the 2023 presidential election.
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The party boss stated: “In a political party, it is normal to have agitation. It is part of democratic process. Therefore, in spite of what Nigerians must have heard over the last couple of weeks about whatever controversies, it’s because our party is a winning party.
“Once you are in the winning party, people know once they win the nomination, they are going to win. So, it’s not surprising that there is excitement and a little agitation here and there in Ekiti.
“It’s not a negative thing, it’s a positive thing. It’s a sign that our party is strong, it’s a sign that our party members are passionate.
“Therefore, all of you who have expressed passion, none of us is holding anything against those expression of your desire to win.
“If you went outside the normal constitutional provisions of our party, if you went violent, we would worry about that. But so far, whatever process, they have been peaceful and I am and very happy with all our members from Ekiti.
“We only hope that at the end of this exercise, you will work together as one happy, united family so that we go into that election, because the fight is not between us. It’s simply a family discussion going on. The real fight is ahead of us.
“At the end of the election in June, we want to congratulate PDP for having won Ekiti. We should be able to say we now have a PDP governor in Ekiti. That is one singular desire that we have. We don’t have any other desire.
“So, it doesn’t matter whether one group or the other has won. Even if we emerge as a candidate and we don’t win the election, it doesn’t have any meaning for the party.
“But if we emerge as a candidate and we win the election, all of us have won because there will be something there for everybody and for every community and for all our members.
“It will be a signal to the whole world that the unity we demonstrated after the convention that produced this current National Working Committee, everybody will know that PDP means business and we have taken the first step to deliver.
“So, I appeal to all of you from Ekiti not to lose track of that key goal. Any other thing is a distraction.
“You must keep in focus the goal we have, first to win Ekiti and if possible to win every possible state and ultimately, to win the presidential election so that we will rescue this country and rebuild it.”
Ayu therefore, appealed to the stakeholders to remain focus on the overall picture in their approach to the gubernatorial election.