The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Thursday said it was battle ready to confront the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) ahead of the 2019 presidential election.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with DAILY INDEPENDENT in Abuja, Prince Uche Secondus, the party’s National Chairman, said any candidate presented by the PDP as its presidential flag bearer would roundly defeat APC’s candidate, including President Muhammadu Buhari.
President Buhari had earlier declared his intention to seek re-election at his party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting in Abuja, on Monday.
According to Secondus, having failed to deliver the majority of the promises it made to Nigerians in the build-up to the 2015 election, there was no way Nigerians who had been subjected to untold hardship under the present government would give their mandate to the APC again.
He listed economic recession, high rate of unemployment, insecurity, the high cost of living, daily job losses, and lopsided anti-corruption war as some of the problems the APC government had foisted on the Nigerian populace.
I am convinced beyond reasonable doubt that we will present a credible presidential candidate that will be acceptable to all Nigerians. Such candidate will emerge through a free, fair and credible democratic process.
“I am confident that whoever flies the flag of our party will defeat the presidential candidate of APC, including President Buhari because I don’t see Nigerians voting the APC back to power.
“They have failed in all their promises. In fact, it was a colossal failure and they themselves know that they have disappointed Nigerians.
They promised one naira to a dollar, today it is N362 to a dollar.
“They said if Buhari becomes president, fuel will be sold at N40 per litre. Today, fuel is being sold at N145 per litre and above N200 in some places. They visited hunger and untold hardship on the masses.
“The economy today is in a shambles. People are losing jobs on a daily basis.
“Unemployment rate is on the highest level and killer herdsmen are on the rampage.
“They have failed virtually on all that they promised. So, why will any sane person ask them to continue for another four years?
“Nigerians have experienced both APC and PDP and they can see that the difference is very clear.
“Of course, we made some mistakes but we were humble enough to admit it and promised to right the wrongs in the future.
“So, I am optimistic that our candidate will beat the APC candidate, even if it is Buhari, by a wide margin, but we are appealing that the election should be free and fair.”