By Chimezie Godfrey
A member of the People’s Democratic party (PDP), Ward 5, Okpella, Edo state, Prince Kassim Afegbua has called for the resignation of the National Chairman of the Party, Prince Uche Secondus.
The call for the PDP Chairman’s resignation is coming on the heels of the recent defection of Governor of Cross River state, Ben Ayade to the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC).
He said, “I had predicted in the course of my interrogation of the leadership that Governors Ayade, Matawalle, and Ikpeazu would soon exit the party, as well as Fani-Kayode and Senator Grace Bent, simply because the Secondus leadership is bereft of ideas and lacks the capacity to lead a virile opposition. Under his phlegmatic leadership, the PDP has lost two serving Governors while others are in the queue to exit the party.
Afegbua who disclosed this in a statement on Friday, reiterated his prediction that many stalwarts of the PDP were on the verge of leaving the party due to the incompetent leadership of the party under the present Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus.
Afegbua asserted that the current leadership of the PDP under Secondus has outlived its usefulness, and therefore called for his immediate resignation.
He said,”I have reinterated the fact that the present leadership of the peoples’ Democratic Party, PDP, under Prince Uche Secondus has outlived its usefulness and therefore deserves to be shown the exit door or voluntarily resign.
“Uche Secondus is killing the party day by day because he does not have what it takes to pilot the affairs of the opposition.
“Right before our very eyes, we have lost two former Speakers, Dogara and Bankole, former Governor Gbenga Daniel has left, David Umahi and Ben Ayade have both left, making the party vulnerable to the average Nigerian mind.”
Afegbua urged the stakeholders of the party to move beyond mere meetings to push away Secondus as a way to re-ignite, reboot and rejig the party for more constructive engagements that would reposition the party ahead of the 2023 elections.
He said the Governors Forum, the Board of Trustees and the National Executive Committee must take a deliberate step to arrest the present drift of the party in the hands of a man who has no capacity to lead a 21st century opposition party like PDP.
He stressed that the time for the aforementioned party leadership to take action is now, adding that tomorrow may be too late.
Afegbua further urged Secondus to respond to the invitation of the anti-granft agencies instead of playing the ostrich.
According to him, there is need to recover the party from those who have not added value to it, and to enthrone transparency, probity among other virtues that will move the party forward.
“Prince Uche Secondus should respond to the invitation of the anti-graft agency, instead of playing ostrich, in a renewed bid to recover the party from those who have not added value to it.
“Transparency, openness, probity and accountability are the veritable ingredients to nurture a holistic society where rule of law and justice prevail, in driving governance and utility-driven leadership.
“The present leadership of the PDP under Uche Secondus has made the party an endangered specie that is now vulnerable to so many frailties and fractures.
“An opposition party that should be gaining momentum in the face of the incompetent leadership of the country is painfully losing momentum with depleted membership on a regular basis. That is not cheering news at all.
“The time to show Secondus and his co-travellers the exit door is now. We need to act fast before the apocalypse,” Afegbua stressed.
