The future of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Lagos State is much better and brighter today in spite of its aborted Oct. 16 state congress.
The declaration was made in Lagos on Thursday by Dr Adetokunbo Pearse, a contender for the position of state chairman of the party when he spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).
The Oct. 16 congress was aborted when some delegates came up with a “Unity List’’ at the venue, an action which did not go down well with other delegates.
The rancour that ensued compelled the electoral committee to abort the process.
The party’s national headquarters has yet to announce a date for a rescheduled party congress in the state.
Pearse told NAN that the congress was aborted because of outcries by majority of delegates for a free, fair and democratic process and stressed that that the cancellation was for the good of the party.
“I am hopeful our future will be much better and brighter than our past in Lagos State PDP.
“All we have to do and all the national headquarters of the PDP has to do are to make sure that we have a free, fair and open democratic election when the congress is rescheduled.
“Once we have that, everything should be in place,’’ Pearse, the 2019 Lagos State governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) said.
He decried plans by some PDP leaders in the state to impose officials on the party in contrast to the democratic process of free and fair election.
“The aborted exercise was the first time delegates would come to the congress to vote for somebody who has gone to campaign to them.
“Everywhere I went, delegates told me that nobody had ever in the history of PDP in Lagos State come to campaign for the position of State Chairman.
“Before now, campaigns had been limited to lobbying by some godfathers in the state who handpicked party officials for delegates to ratify.
“The people, members of the party, are waking up and demanding the right to express themselves and to choose whoever they want by themselves. So, it is a good development in the party,’’ Pearse said.
He told NAN that the yet-to-be rescheduled congress should be a proper democratic election.
According to him, whoever wins in that election becomes the state chairman of a great party.
“We will now begin to re-organise the party as bona fide state chairman elected by the people and not selected by one leader or the other,’’ he stressed.
Pearse called for proper security during the yet-to-be rescheduled congress to prevent the type of disruption that took place at the aborted exercise.
“Anybody who disrupts such election should be arrested on the spot and taken away.
“If we are able to do that, then we will have a beginning of progress and peace in our party,’’ he added.
Other contenders for the Lagos PDP chairmanship seat are Messrs Philips Aivoji, Niyi Adams, Hakeem Amode and Dr Amos Fawole. (NAN)
