The trio spoke as they met separately with the Strategy Review and Inter-Party Committee, led by Prof. Jerry Gana, to chart a new course for the party. Jonathan, who received members of the committee in his Maitama residence, said what the country needed now was the strengthening of institutions that would hold leaders accountable when they tended to deviate from their missions, adding that no country could grow and develop without strong institutions. While commending the party’s leadership and committee on the outcome of the work, Jonathan said: “I am among the persons who believe that for a nation to grow, the institutions must be very strong, just like you mentioned about INEC.
“There is no way a nation will grow with weak institutions because everything about politics is about the people, not about the individuals. As long you are interested in the people, you are interested in growth of the society, the development of the nation.” Speaking on the fate of his party ahead of 2019, Jonathan said: “PDP is still the biggest and the strongest party, irrespective of what happened in 2015 general elections. “Yes, we lost the presidential election but that doesn’t diminish us. Every other party still knows that PDP is a leading party. Losing the Presidency is something temporary. “We should be able to get that position back as long as we are able to get our acts together. I am happy that you people are working towards that.”
Statutory delegates
On how to check some of the deficiencies that led to the party losing election in 2015, Jonathan advocated the use of more statutory delegates for the party’s primaries to check imposition of candidates. “Direct primaries is the ultimate; it is the best way of selecting candidates but the greatest problem a society has is how to manage direct primaries. It means if you want to elect president or governor, you cannot bring everybody to one place. It means that voting will take place from ward level or local government level. “The best way to stop imposition is to make sure that people don’t control the delegates. If we go by delegates election, it will be easiest to manage. How to select delegates is by ensuring that at least 70 percent of the delegates are not under the control of anybody.
I still have interest in national issues —Anenih
Meanwhile, former chairman of the Board of Trustees, BoT, of the party, Chief Tony Anenih, said he would show more than a passing interest in issues affecting the nation, even though he has resigned from active partisan politics. He said the PDP and its leaders should not be embarrassed if they saw him embark on visits to either President Muhammadu Buhari or Vice President Yemi Osinbajo in order to rub minds on issues of national interest. Anenih restated his position, which he made last year at the public presentation of his book, that he would no longer be available for night political meetings but would not hesitate to offer advice to the PDP if the party leaders decided to tap from his wealth of experience. He, however, had harsh words for the party leaders who he accused of promoting their selfish interests at the expense of the party’s. He said:
“PDP is where it is today because of selfishness on the part of its leaders, a vast majority of who want to be either a presidential candidate or national chairman.”
Tukur expresses happiness
In his remarks, former chairman of the party, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, expressed happiness that the PDP was now rebranding and trying to return power genuinely to the people, adding that there was no place in the country where a member of the party was not found. He urged the Jerry Gana committee not to relent or be deterred in its efforts to restore the glory of the party, noting that the party is not owned by any individual but the generality of Nigerians. “To me, this is a very interesting day to see that you are now keeping faith with democracy because PDP as a party is involved in rebranding to give back the party to the people just like its slogan says ‘Power to the People’.
INEC, a tool for APC—Gana
Gana, while addressing the three elder statesmen, at the separate visits, noted that the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, had become a tool in the hands of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC. He added that the present administration had been associated with oppressive tendencies which led to political prisoners which never reared its ugly head during the entire 16 years of PDP administration. Gana, who disclosed that the PDP was set to organize an international summit on the defence of human rights, decried the “threat to democracy to the extent that basic human rights that we took for granted.” Among those that accompanied Prof. Jerry Gana on the consultative visits, were two former governors, Babangida Aliyu (Niger), Achike Undenwa (Imo), Prof. Tunde Adeniran, Prof. Rufai Alkali, Chief Raymond Dokpesi, Shehu Garbam and Senator Stella Omu.
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