The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has spoken about the zoning of 2023 Presidential election, says the party is yet to decide on zoning.
The National Chairman of the party, Prince Uche Secondus, said the party will not be drawn to the politics of zoning its 2023 Presidential ticket until the committee set up to review the party’s performance in the 2019 general elections submit its report.
Secondus stated this on Thursday at a media parley with journalists in Abuja.
According to him, zoning of Presidential ticket takes the backstage considering the state of insecurity in the country.
On whether former President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan would be brought to run on the platform of the party, Secondus said once the committee submits its report, those interested in the plum office including the ex-President will be at liberty to throw their hats in the ring.
He said: “I stand by my position that the Governor Bala-led committee is still working, they are coming out with a report on why we lost and by the time they finish, we will take decisions and the decision is not for the National Working Committee but for the entirety of our party.
“I believe that whoever is interested in the 2023 election, including the former President, the chances are there, because the PDP is a party of all.
Everybody will have that opportunity but in clear terms, we have not taken any decision to give anybody the ticket for now.”
The PDP boss also flayed the All Progressives Congress, APC for allegedly trying to poach members of other political parties to join it’s fold saying “they have been running round but they have not been successful at all.
I believe that what should bother them most should be governance, the security, the economy, which have broken down.
“The issue is that they should stop running up and down and face the reason why the people gave them the mandate to govern and if they do that, there will be no security issue, there will be no economic issue like hunger. I think that this is the most important thing.”
For backing out of his earlier arrangement to address federal legislators on the debilitating insecurity across the country, Secondus said President Muhammadu Buhari has woefully failed Nigerians.
This is even as he carpeted the president for failing to protect Nigerians who are being killed by Boko Haram terrorists, kidnappers and bandits, on a daily basis.
He said that the President Buhari administration was running a broken government, where he is not in charge.
“President Muhammadu Buhari who was scheduled to address the nation’s parliament today backed out after earlier confirming his availability.
“This back and front from the President on a vital issue as security that is overwhelming our nation underscores our position as an opposition party that nobody is in-charge and that this is a broken government.
“Disregarding the nation’s parliament is disregarding Nigeria people because they are representatives of the people.
“The truth which is worrisome is that the President either does not know what is happening or does not know what to do otherwise, he should not be afraid to face the people.
“The hard fact facing all of us know is that this regime has woefully failed Nigerians in all ramifications.
Continuing, Secondus said “It’s a shame that a government that came to power brandishing its military credential as a General with the propaganda to wipe away Boko Haram in 100 days is there 5 years plus, presiding over the worst security situation in our history with no clear direction on what to do and even afraid to face the country’s the parliament to explain what he is doing.
“In my statement to the media last May in the assessment of the five years of APC administration, I said that APC is a road Nigeria should not have followed.
Everything on ground in our country today from insecurity to the recessed economy, etc, points to the fact that Nigeria entered the wrong bus in 2015 and they are paying for it because a wrong vehicle cannot take you to your correct destination.”
The event which coincided with the three years in office of Secondus as PDP national chairman offered him an opportunity to present his scorecard.
According to him, his stewardship of Nigeria’s largest opposition party in the last three years has been devoid of fraud, corruption and lack of internal democracy.
