The mega rally held yesterday by the Delta State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) suffered a huge blow after prominent party leaders and their supporters boycotted the event.
Amongst those who stayed away were former Governor James Ibori, former Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan, Deputy Gov. Burutu Utuaro and PDP member representing Delta South senatorial district, Senator James Manager. Also Ovuozourie Macaulay and court the backed Delta PDP governorship candidate, Olorogun David Edebvie and a host of others, failed to turn up at the rally.
The absence of many prominent members of the party cast a pall over the ceremony meant to unveil the gubernatorial candidate of the party in next year’s election. Regardless, Governor Dr Ifeanyi Okowa was upbeat, boasting that the party’s victory in Osun governorship polls signposts its readiness to return Nigeria to better days. Okowa, who spoke at the rally in Ozoro, Isoko North LGA, assured that the crisis in the party over its governorship ticket was “democracy in action.” He said, “Whatever is going on in the party today is a normal democratic process; so, there is nothing to worry about, no cause for alarm and no cause to fear.”
“I heard some people saying that PDP is dying in Delta State and I wonder why they are deceiving themselves. We are not boasting but on the day of election, our people will come out and vote and in the next election we are going to win all available seats – from the Assembly to the presidential,” he said. He thanked PDP’s presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, for nominating him as his running mate, and assured him that Deltans would support the Atiku-Okowa ticket.
Delta chairman of PDP, Mr. Kingsley Esiso, said the purpose of the rally was to receive defectors from other parties. On the governorship tussle in the state, Esiso urged party faithful to remain calm, adding that INEC had asked stakeholders to maintain calm until the entire court processes were exhausted. “By the action of INEC yesterday (Friday), we have been told in PDP to wait patiently for the outcome of the court judgement,” he stated. The rally was attended by, Minority Leader of House of Representatives, Chief Ndudi Elumelu, Speaker of the state’s House of Assembly, Chief Sheriff Oborevwori, among others.