Conrad Utaan is an aspirant for the Nationwide Chairmanship of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). On this interview, he speaks on why the North Central geopolitical zone must be allowed to supply the chief of the occasion
What’s your tackle the state of affairs within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)?
Someday final yr, we had a problem in Benue or inside the occasion. 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 occasion led to the problems that cropped as much as his elimination.
His ward government handed a vote of no confidence on him and suspended him from the occasion. The primary motive they gave then was that he was owing occasion dues for 2 years, amongst a number of different causes.
There was numerous confusion. Individuals mentioned he wasn’t eliminated. Some members of the Nationwide Working Committee had been saying he was now not chairman. Some had been saying he was chairman. Everyone simply sat again and no one was speaking about it.
You recognize that the confusion lasted for about two or three months, till I approached the court docket 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 court docket dominated that, in fact, they can not droop him as nationwide chairman, however they will droop him as a member of the occasion. And as soon as he’s suspended as a member of the occasion, he loses the bottom as as to whether to be chairman or not.
The court docket later declared that he was now not chairman, and naturally, he went to the Courtroom 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 occasion’s structure says that if a emptiness happens, the occasion must decide a alternative from the place that emptiness has occurred.
Why didn’t adhere to this provision of its structure?
The occasion sat and zoned positions. What got here to us within the North Central was the nationwide chairman however rapidly, we found that Umar Damagum was changing into roughly a substantive chairman and no one was saying something. So, once more, I took it upon myself to offer it a problem. The chairmanship of the PDP is zoned to the North Central.
If the occasion or the Nationwide Govt Committee of the occasion decides that Damagum must 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 carry the alternative.
The North-East can not 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 occasion. The vice chairman, North Central, that’s zonal chairman for North Central went to Plateau and Nasarawa additionally received some.
However what got here to Benue was nationwide chairman; when it received to Benue, the leaders of the occasion, of their knowledge, mentioned 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 immediately, I’m the one individual aspiring from Benue North West; there’s no one from Zone C. The one different individual operating is former Governor Gabriel Suswam who’s from Zone A, the place Gemade, a former nationwide chairman hails from.
The PDP shouldn’t be embroiled in management succession points as a result of the APC, as a lot as we hate to take it, may stroll into one other time period, if the PDP continues the best way it’s now.
What are your possibilities within the nationwide chairmanship contest?
However you realize the state of affairs on this nation, you could 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 one 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 if you point out Conrad, they are saying, who’s that?
The place is he from? However as an alternative of that being an obstacle, I feel it’s a large benefit for my occasion 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 occasion requires peace and reconciliation and any individual who can construct unity for us to have the ability to win again energy. I solely turned 47 years previous final month.
If God permits and I get elected as nationwide chairman, I would be the youngest chairman of any main political occasion 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 highway exhibits and symposia and going to campuses to carry younger individuals into the occasion, could be an enormous asset for the occasion. The PDP since after the time of Alex Ekwueme and Solomon Lar has all the time been embroiled in management succession.
So, I feel it’s time for a recent begin. Any individual wants to come back to the desk with new concepts, recent vitality, new pondering. We’d like any individual who’s humble sufficient to succeed in out to the leaders of this occasion and converse to them like one who is ready to unify this occasion, carry the leaders again to the desk to chart a brand new course for our occasion.
The PDP is the one natural occasion; these different political events that you simply see round, are kids of circumstance, convocation of unusual bedfellows. Even within the All Progressives Congress (APC) immediately, some individuals nonetheless discuss Motion Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) and New PDP.
There are nonetheless these traces of division, and naturally, the Labour Party is constructed round one particular person. There is no such thing as a group or hamlet in Nigeria you go to that you’ll not discover PDP construction however it’s a disgrace that we’ve discovered ourselves the place we’re.
Nonetheless, the occasion has a uncommon likelihood to rebuild itself by bringing a face that no one actually is aware of, a brand new face that may carry confidence to the hearts of Nigerians to say that is one thing new, let’s attempt it. And belief me; I’ve the message that may resonate with the extraordinary individuals on the streets.
The PDP doesn’t have to marketing campaign for 2027, the occasion in energy proper now’s campaigning for PDP. Everyone goes by way of arduous time. How do you take away subsidy and float your forex 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. After all, the present president will not be operating on a well-liked mandate. Those who voted in opposition to him had been greater than those who voted for him. So, it’s not a well-liked mandate anyway.
The PDP shouldn’t be embroiled in management succession points as a result of the APC, as a lot as we hate to take it, may stroll into one other time period, if the PDP continues the best way it’s now.
Are you operating to serve out North Central’s tenure or for a recent time period?
I’m not operating to be chairman for 4 years. I’m operating 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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