An aspirant to the nationwide chairmanship of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Conrad Utaan, on this interview, speaks on why the North Central ought to be allowed to supply a substitute for Dr. Iyorchia Ayu consistent with the structure of the get together
What’s your tackle the state of affairs within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)?
Someday final yr, we had a problem in Benue or throughout the get together. The build-up began earlier than the elections, after which instantly after the elections, the disagreements that arose between Dr. Iyorchia Ayu, our former nationwide chairman, and a few members and leaders of the get together led to the problems that cropped as much as his removing.
His ward government handed a vote of no confidence on him and suspended him from the get together. The principle motive they gave then was that he was owing get together dues for 2 years, amongst a number of different causes.
There was a number of confusion. Folks stated he wasn’t eliminated. Some members of the Nationwide Working Committee had been saying he was not chairman. Some had been saying he was chairman. All people simply sat again and no person was speaking about it.
You recognize that the confusion lasted for about two or three months, till I approached the courtroom for an interpretation of our structure primarily based on the suspension from the ward. I sought to know whether it is doable for a nationwide chairman to be suspended by his ward or suspended by the Nationwide Working Committee.
The courtroom dominated that, in fact, they can not droop him as nationwide chairman, however they’ll droop him as a member of the get together. And as soon as he’s suspended as a member of the get together, he loses the bottom as as to if to be chairman or not.
The courtroom later declared that he was not chairman, and naturally, he went to the Court docket of Appeal however later withdrew the case. Now, a emptiness has arisen, and it’s been like this for over a yr. Part 47(6) of our get together’s structure says that if a emptiness happens, the get together must decide a substitute from the place that emptiness has occurred.
The get together sat and zoned positions. What got here to us within the North Central was the nationwide chairman however swiftly, we found that Umar Damagum was changing into roughly a substantive chairman and no person was saying something. So, once more, I took it upon myself to present it a problem. The chairmanship of the PDP is zoned to the North Central.
If the get together or the Nationwide Government Committee of the get together decides that Damagum ought to be a substantive chairman, they need to come out and inform the North Central that the place of Deputy Chairman (North), which Damagum was occupying earlier than he ascended to the chairmanship place, is vacant and that the North Central ought to convey the substitute.
The North-East can’t have deputy nationwide chairman and nationwide chairman on the identical time, whereas the North Central is left with nothing.
For individuals who don’t know, the North Central is split into two zones. One zone is Kwara, Kogi and Niger. The opposite zone is Benue, Plateau and Nasarawa. The place of nationwide authorized adviser went to the Kwara, Kogi and Niger zone, and naturally, the nationwide authorized adviser is from Kwara State.
The place of nationwide chairman went to Plateau, Nasarawa and Benue. That was how Iyorchia Ayu emerged as nationwide chairman of our get together. The vice chairman, North Central, that’s zonal chairman for North Central went to Plateau and Nasarawa additionally acquired some.
However what got here to Benue was nationwide chairman; when it acquired to Benue, the leaders of the get together, of their knowledge, stated Senator Gemade had been the nationwide chairman from Benue North East (Zone A) and Audu Ogbe had the chairmanship from Benue South; that’s Zone C. The zone that has not produced that sort of nationwide officer from Benue is Zone B; that’s Benue North-West senatorial district.
That was why Iyorchia Ayu was chosen as nationwide chairman. So, that zone B will now even have a stake. The nationwide chairman was zoned and micro-zoned. It wasn’t for all of Nigeria. It was for North Central. It wasn’t for all of North Central; it was for Benue.
It wasn’t for all of Benue; it was for Benue North West Senatorial District (Zone B). And because it stands at this time, I’m the one particular person aspiring from Benue North West; there’s no person from Zone C. The one different particular person working is former Governor Gabriel Suswam who’s from Zone A, the place Gemade, a former nationwide chairman hails from.
It’s a disgrace that now we have discovered ourselves the place we’re. Nonetheless, the get together has a uncommon probability to rebuild itself
What are your possibilities within the nationwide chairmanship contest?
However you realize the state of affairs on this nation, you need to have been a former governor or former senator or former Home of Representatives member or former one thing, to be nationwide chairman of PDP. It’s unusual to see me, somebody who’s no person desirous to be nationwide chairman. I’ve not been governor.
I’ve not been a Home of Representatives member. I’ve not been a senator. I’ve not been a minister. I occur to be a brand new face. So, generally whenever you point out Conrad, they are saying, who’s that?
The place is he from? However as a substitute of that being a drawback, I believe it’s a big benefit for my get together as a result of I don’t include the encumbrance of the bags that individuals, who’ve been former this and former that and former this carry. Proper now, our get together requires peace and reconciliation and any person who can construct unity for us to have the ability to win again energy. I solely turned 47 years outdated final month.
If God permits and I get elected as nationwide chairman, I would be the youngest chairman of any main political get together in Nigeria. Now, the PDP has a uncommon alternative of harnessing the most important voting demography on this nation. These between the ages of 18 and 50 represent greater than 72 per cent of the voting inhabitants of Nigeria.
A younger nationwide chairman with the vitality, with the drive to prepare street reveals and symposia and going to campuses to convey younger folks into the get together, can be an enormous asset for the get together. The PDP since after the time of Alex Ekwueme and Solomon Lar has all the time been embroiled in management succession, so I believe it’s time for a contemporary begin. Any person wants to come back to the desk with new concepts, contemporary vitality, new pondering.
We want any person who’s humble sufficient to succeed in out to the leaders of this get together and converse to them like one who is ready to unify this get together, convey the leaders again to the desk to chart a brand new course for our get together.
The PDP is the one natural get together; these different political events that you simply see round, are youngsters of circumstance, the convocation of unusual bedfellows. Even within the All Progressives Congress (APC) at this time, some folks nonetheless speak about Motion Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) and New PDP.
There are nonetheless these strains of division, and naturally, the Labour Party is constructed round one particular person. There isn’t any group or hamlet in Nigeria you go to that you’ll not discover PDP construction however it’s a disgrace that now we have discovered ourselves the place we’re.
Nonetheless, the get together has a uncommon probability to rebuild itself by bringing a face that no person actually is aware of, a brand new face that may convey confidence to the hearts of Nigerians to say that is one thing new, let’s strive it. And belief me; I’ve the message that may resonate with the strange folks on the streets. The PDP doesn’t have to marketing campaign for 2027, the get together in energy proper now could be campaigning for PDP. All people goes by way of a tough time.
How do you take away subsidy and float your foreign money in a single breath? What financial pondering is that? It’s unlucky. However like we all the time say, elections have penalties. Some Nigerians are going by way of arduous time as a consequence of their docility, refusing to take part actively. In fact, the present president just isn’t working on a well-liked mandate.
Those who voted towards him had been greater than those who voted for him. So, it’s not a well-liked mandate anyway. The PDP ought to no longer be embroiled in management succession points. The APC, as a lot as we hate to take it, could stroll into one other time period, if the PDP continues this fashion. I’m not working to be chairman for 4 years.
I’m working to finish the time period of the North Central, the time period of Benue, the time period of Benue North West Central Senatorial District. Even whether it is for 2 days; it belongs to the North Central, it belongs to Benue.
It belongs to Zone B of Benue State. It’s ours, even when it’s for 2 days. So, justice requires that the PDP ought to return to the North Central what actually belongs to the North Central.
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