ABUJA— Ahead of its National Executive Committee, NEC, meeting, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has said it was not under pressure to zone or throw its presidential ticket open.
The party also stated that the overall interest of Nigeria would guide the position it would take on the sensitive issue in the days ahead.
In an interview with our correspondent, National Publicity Secretary of the party, Debo Ologunagba, said having received the report of the 37-man committee on zoning, the National Working Committee, NWC, would transmit same to NEC for thorough study and adoption of a position.
According to him, the PDP is too big to bow to the pressure from an individual or group.
He said as a party founded on democratic principles, the wishes of the people would guide its stand on the matter.
He said: “The PDP is not under any form of pressure at all as far as the matter of zoning is concerned. We are a party founded on democratic norms and values. Do not forget that we are a party that follows procedures in all we do.
Speaking on the Easter message by the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Matthew Kukah, Ologunagba said the highly revered clergyman was on spot when he said only corruption is alive and well in Nigeria.
He said: “He (Kukah) got it right. Everything has collapsed under the watch of President Muhammadu Buhari. Insecurity, education, unity, health and more are in worse state today than they were in 2015.
“Bishop Kukah should be commended for speaking truth to power. We need men like him to speak up at a time like this when a government that promised security as one of the major planks of its agenda, watches helplessly as terrorists take over our land, from North to South, East to West. It is a shame.”
Recalling that the late Chief Tony Momoh once asked Nigerians to stone APC leaders in the event of failing to meet their expectations, the publicity scribe urged citizens not to toe that line.
“As a party that hates violence, we cannot urge Nigerians to stone them. They should vote them out in 2023. That is the biggest gift any Nigerian can ask for now,” Ologunagba said.
In the same vein, Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Mike Ozekhome, said the Catholic Archbishop of Sokoto Diocese, Kukah, should be commended for his consistency in the rebuke of a government that had failed to learn from its own mistakes.
“I totally agree with him (Kukah). Corruption is the biggest industry in Nigeria today. It is the 37th richest and most potent state in Nigeria today,” he said.
