Chairman, Board of Trustees of the
Peoples Democratic Party, Chief Tony Anenih, has proposed to the ruling
party to grant automatic ticket to President Goodluck Jonathan for the
2015 presidential election.
He also asked that governors serving
their first term on the platform of the party be exempted from the
party’s primaries ahead of the next election.
Anenih made the call at a family dinner organised for PDP chiefs at the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Thursday.
The event, which ended in the early
hours of Friday, was attended by President Jonathan; President of the
Senate, David Mark; Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu
Tambuwal; national chairman of the party, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur; state
governors, members of the National Assembly and other party chiefs.
“I do not see anything wrong if the
party grants automatic tickets to its President and governors, who are
seeking a second term. With President Jonathan’s achievements in the
power sector and others, I don’t think the party should find it
difficult to give him an automatic second term ticket,” he said.
Anenih described a situation where two
state governors, Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers and Jonah Jang of Plateau, are
laying claim to the leadership of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum as an
embarrassment to the party.
He, therefore, called on the party leadership to quickly correct the situation.
The party chief confirmed that during
his recent tour of states, some governors complained bitterly against
the party leadership while the party leaders too, have some grievances
against some governors.
He, however, expressed the belief that notwithstanding the magnitude of the problems, they are surmountable.
In reconciling aggrieved party members, Anenih stressed the need for party discipline and loyalty among members.
He said if the party must continue to
enjoy the support of Nigerians, members should restrain themselves from
causing unnecessary tension in the polity.
Jonathan, in his remarks, boasted that
despite the ranting of the opposition political parties, the PDP would
continue to win elections in the country.
“They (members of opposition parties)
will conspire but PDP will continue to win elections. Nobody should be
scared of conspiracy because it will linger in politics. All what we
have to do is to work together and resolve our differences and move
forward,” he said.
He said the PDP was not about an individual, asking members to remain united.
The President said since disagreements
could not be completely eliminated, the ability to resolve such
differences should be paramount.
For his part, Mark admitted that the
party had some challenges but appealed to all members to ensure that the
challenges were put behind them.
He said after 14 years in power, PDP members have the right to beat their chests and say with pride that they have done well.
“No nation will change a winning team. PDP is a winning team and I know that the nation will continue to support us,” he said.
Speaker Tambuwal said the National
Assembly had been supporting and complementing the programmes of the
executive arm of government.
He urged party members to imbibe the spirit of togetherness as a family.
Tukur appealed to those in positions to respect the rights and privileges of others while enjoying their own.
He warned against the making of inflammatory statements against opponents.
Special Adviser to the President on
Political Matters, Dr. Ahmed Gulak, in a welcome address, said PDP
leaders and members would not sit back and allow power to slip from
their hands.
The presidential aide described the yet-to-be-registered All Progressives Congress as dead on arrival.
He told Jonathan that it was God who gave him an assignment through the votes of Nigerians and not an individual.
“God gave you the job through Nigerians
who voted you. No single individual gave you the job. Nigerians are
satisfied with you and they are with you.
“You asked us not to bark and we agreed.
PDP is the only national party in Nigeria; the only party with
bridge-builders. PDP will continue to rule this country as long as there
is PDP,” he said.
Governor Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State said the party had not disappointed Nigerians in 14 years of service delivery.
He said governors on the platform of the party would no longer decrease in number but will continue to increase.
“There is no PDP governor that is going to any other party. We are not going anywhere,” he said.
Chief Emmanuel Nwuanyawu, on behalf of
the South-East, said there was nowhere any decision was taken that
Jonathan should serve for only one term.
He said the people of the South-East
felt insulted that some people were bent on stopping the President from
enjoying the constitutionally allowed two terms of four years each.
He recalled that the people of his region decided collectively to give their support to Jonathan during the last election.
The party chief claimed some members of
the party present at the event were already busy negotiating
governorship tickets with other parties.
Chief Ebenezer Babatope, on behalf of the South-West, described Jonathan’s administration as God-ordained.
“You are with us, nobody can defeat you. We supported you the last time, we will do it again,” he said.
He said the late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, had earlier predicted that an Ijaw man would one day become the President.
Senator Stella Omu, who represented the
South-South, said the people of the region were proud of Jonathan and
his transformation agenda, which she said was on course.
Prof. Jerry Gana, on behalf of the North Central, said Jonathan had given true leadership to the country and the party.
“We support President Jonathan. We are delighted that he has performed wonderfully well,” he said.
Hajia Zaynab Maina from the North-East
said members of the opposition parties would no longer sleep well
because of the achievements of the present administration.
Aminu Wali of the North-West said the party had served the country well for the past 14 years.
At the event were members of the
National Assembly, members of the party’s National Working Committee and
the BOT; members of the Federal Executive Council; former state
governors on the platform of the PDP; Chief Edwin Clark, Chief Diepreye
Alamieyeseigha, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, Chukwuma Soludo, Barnabas
Gemade, Vincent Ogbulafor, Jubril Aminu, Okesilieze Nwodo, Chief Jim
Nwodo, Senator Iyiola Omisore, among others.
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