14th July, 2018
Adejoke Adeleye/Abeokuta
National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Prince Uche Secondus says former president Olusegun Obasanjo has forgiven the sins of the party against him and has decided to lead the party to victory in 2019.
Secondus told newsmen shortly after a closed door meeting with Obasanjo at his Presidential Library complex in Abeokuta, Ogun State, that: “We have done everything that is supposed to be done. We have done right and Baba in his kindness has extended his forgiveness, so we are happy that Baba would been seen to lead us and he has graciously say that he was going to lead us.”
The PDP National Chairman said he is extremely glad to be part of the process to come with the party committees from Abuja to meet with Obasanjo.
He described Obasanjo as the root of democracy and they have to go back to him.
“I feel extremely glad and I believe we are honored to be part of this process. It is colourful to have come outside Abuja to meet our Baba of modern democracy in Nigeria. First and foremost we are going back to our root in democracy because that is our root.”
“We have done everything that is supposed to be done. We have done right and Baba in his kindness has extended his forgiveness, so we are happy that Baba would been seen to lead us and he has graciously say that he was going to lead us.”
”Thank God we have good followers to follow and lead for the betterment of ‘One Nigeria’.
”The unity that existed in this nation before this administration is what we want for a better living for all Nigerians,” Secondus stated.
In his own speech, Jubril Wali, Chairman Board of Trustees of the PDP confirmed to newsmen that Obasanjo has agreed to lead the party for the 2019 election.
“He is our leader. Obasanjo is a national leader, he is a father of the nation. We came to consult with him. Baba (Obasanjo) is no longer in PDP but he is still the father of the nation, so I believe that regardless of the political party, his direction is needed now. He is really needed now to rescue Nigeria.
“We don’t want to dwell on a rumor that Baba is in another political party. As the father of the nation, he cannot join a party. You are aware that the country is sliding under the APC government. Therefore, the media should do us a favour to help us reach out to other contestants,” Wali pleaded
Chief Bode George said his clarion call is for the nation to be rescued. Nobody wants this country to be destroyed. The thing is, APC is not doing well. The beauty of democracy is that the people will determine who will govern them. The questions those who wants to vote should ask themselves are: ‘Are you better off today than before. If yes, vote APC, but if you are dissatisfied with your economic life in the country, your standard of living, about security, about unemployment and all that, you need to vote the party out.
”That is why every four years you must go back to rebuild your bond with the people. That is the beauty of democracy, it is not a military government, you are accountable to the people of this country. That is why in everything you do, in the four years, three years you do better, the last one year, you account for it, that is why you should go back to renew your mandate.
“That is what we are doing. I just want to find out who is happy, who is healthy, who is okay with the things that we do and are well secured with all the things we are facing from the APC-led government. We must be fooling ourselves if we don’t tell ourselves the truth.
“This is not a matter of politics now, we, the managers, should know how to manage the economy of our country for the benefit of our people.
“Therefore,let Nigerians wake up and ask themselves those questions and if they have not, then let them do like they do in other democratic countries in the world to change the government. We have learnt a lesson and that is why we in PDP have come together. If you have a common agenda, why can’t we come together, there are no ideological differences, either central right and some to central left, no, just basic thing, ensuring economic peace for our nation.
All efforts to speak with Chief Olusegun Obasanjo proved abortive.