The Nation Newspaper

Tag: PDP plans

  • PDP plans ward-to-ward campaign

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) plans to adopt an “aggressive” ward-to-ward campaign against the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), it was learnt yesterday.

    The party agreed that taking the battle to the grassroots is the “best political weapon to defeat the APC”.

    Presidential campaigns begin on November 18.

    There are indications that Atiku and his team have finalised the list of members of the Presidential Campaign Council (PCC).

    Atiku, who is expected back from Dubai at the weekend, may release the list immediately after.

    He has been meeting with his running mate, Peter Obi, PDP National Chairman Uche Secondus, Director-General of PCC Dr. Bukola Saraki, former Director-General of Atiku Campaign Organisation, ex-Governor Gbenga Daniel and some zonal coordinators.

    It was learnt that the meeting centred only on the strategy to defeat President Muhammadu Buhari.

    A source, who spoke in confidence with our correspondent on the phone, said: “The essence of the Dubai meeting is how to take the battle to APC’s doorsteps and win the 2019 poll.

    “One of the options agreed upon is the aggressive campaign from ward to ward to carry the masses along. They chose this option because Buhari has ‘mob’ appeal at the grassroots especially in the North.

    “So, this ward-to-ward PDP campaign will involve all members of the party instead of recourse to jamboree.

    “The battle will be fought in the print media, television and radio stations, and on the internet, based on facts and figures. The PDP is prepared to go for broke, devoid of violence.”

    The source added: “In the next few days, the PDP candidate or the party will unveil members of the Presidential Campaign Council. The list has been finalised.

    “Barring, last-minute change of mind, Atiku is expected back this weekend.

    “The PDP will soon release #LetsGetNigeriaWorkingAgain document which will be a bombshell. All the members of the strategy team have been working round the clock to come up with a blueprint which is different from what APC has offered in the last three and half years.”

    A source in the APC said: “Whether the PDP candidate and chieftains have gone to Dubai is not an issue. What we want to do is to give feedback to Nigerians on the mandate given to us three years ago.

    “We need to go back to the electorates for the renewal of the mandate. So, we are not really contesting with PDP; we have business with Nigerians.”

  • PDP ‘plans credible presidential primary’

    Each of the 12 presidential aspirants of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will  nominate four persons into the accreditation and the electoral committees in the party’s upcoming convention.

    PDP spokesman Kola Ologbondiyan, who broke the news  in Abuja yesterday, said each of the aspirants will nominate two persons to serve in the two committees.

    According to Ologbondiyan, the move is to ensure that none of the aspirants is left in the dark in the process leading to the convention.

    The spokesman added that besides involving the aspirants in the process, the party wanted to prove to the world that the PDP would always be democratic in the conduct of its internal affairs.

    This, he said, is a clear departure from the past where aspirants were not allowed to nominate agents to represent them at delegates elections.

    Ologbondiyan said, “The National Working Committee (NWC) has chosen to broaden the aspirants’ participation by proving them opportunity to nominate two people each into the accreditation and electoral committees respectively.

    “Each of the presidential aspirant will nominate two people into the accreditation committee and another two into electoral committee. This is to ensure that none of the aspirants is left in the dark as to what the party is doing concerning the convention.

    “The PDP will publish names of all the delegates and make same available to our presidential aspirants before the convention”.

    The party spokesman assured that the PDP will produce a candidate with the capacity to quickly revamp the economy upon election as president.

    He assured that the leadership of the PDP will maintain neutrality in the choice of the party’s flag bearer, adding that it’s the transparency of the process that would enhance the chances of the party in the 2019 presidential election.

    “The PDP has no interest in a particular aspirant. We are hopeful that whoever emerges on Saturday will be a man with the economic wizardry to turn around the fortunes of this country.

    “The party is out to make sure we have a credible primary election and the process will be clean, transparent and acceptable to majority of Nigerians”, he added.

    The party spokesman allayed fears of possible post-convention crisis, saying however that should the situation arise, the party has an effective internal conflict resolution mechanism to deal with it.

  • Pdp plans to massively rig guber, Assembly polls in Benue, APC alleges

    Pdp plans to massively rig guber, Assembly polls in Benue, APC alleges

    •APC jittery over impending defeat – Governor’s aide

    The Ortom/Abounu Governorship Campaign Organisation at the weekend in Makurdi, Benue State alleged plans by the Peoples  Democratic Party (PDP) and its leaders in the state to rig the forthcoming governorship and state  assembly elections.

    A statement from the organisation reads  in part: “The Ortom/Abounu Governorship Campaign Organization  at the weekend  received reliable information that the leadership of the  Peoples Democratic Party  (PDP)  had concluded plans to massively rig the April 11 governorship and state  sssembly polls in Benue State.

    “Impeccable sources disclosed to us that the leader of the party in the state held a meeting with a militia group called the Civilian Joint Task Force during which he gave them marching orders on how to rig the elections.

    “According to the sources,   the party leader  in the state has vowed to do everything within his powers  to avert another electoral defeat, hence his resort to the services of the militia which he had recruited, trained, and equipped with sophisticated weapons under the pretext of raising resistance to incessant herdsmen’s attacks in the state.

    “The sources listed the kidnapping of APC stalwarts and supporters in order to prevent them from mobilizing further support for the party and voting, destruction of card readers, snatching of electoral materials before and after elections as well as burning of collation centres as part of the brief.

    “The PDP is reported to  be  bitter in the state,  particularly with card readers which  they  said were largely responsible for their  defeat and directed the group to ensure that they were destroyed at all polling units in the next round of elections.

    “They have deployed   overwhelming violence to prevent another APC victory and assured that he would give them all the needed logistic support and funding.

    “The Ortom / Abounu Governorship Campaign Organization, therefore, appeals to security agencies to forestall the plans and prevent a breakdown of law and order in the state.

    “We also advise members of the militia group that the political ship has set sailing,  leaving the PDP  behind and it is foolhardy for anyone to put his life at risk in the service of someone or political party  whose political sun has set no matter the inducement

    “The electorate is also urged to be vigilant and prepared   to resist intimidation and threats to undermine the electoral process by coming out in large numbers to overwhelm the attackers and exercise their civic responsibility.”

    Responding, Governor Gabriel Suswam, in a statement signed by his Special Adviser on Media and Public Affairs, Dr. Cletus Akwaya, dismissed the allegation, saying: “This allegation is most bizarre, unfounded and without any element of truth whatsoever as the PDP has no such plans.”

    While denying the knowledge of the existence of any militia group, the statement also claimed that the governor did not preside over a meeting to map out a rigging strategy for the PDP, adding that the governor was in Abuja for “a crucial meeting of the PDP Governors’ Forum” at the time of the alleged meeting.

    The statement reads in part, “The APC alleged that Governor Gabriel Suswam presided over the imaginary meeting to map out the rigging strategy on Thursday at the Government House, Makurdi when in actual fact Governor Suswam was in Abuja for a crucial meeting of the PDP Governors’ Forum on the said day and only returned to Makurdi, the state capital, yesterday afternoon.

    “It is clear that the APC is jittery over its  imminent defeat in the elections because of the popularity of our candidate, Rt. Hon. Terhemen Tarzoor, hence the resort to this unfounded allegation.

    “Similarly, the allegation of plans to kidnap APC stalwarts is  imaginary, ordinary and cheap, as it’s  a direct opposite of the recent political happenings in the state where a PDP supporter and sympathizer was victim of the kidnap network. Specifically, the provost of the College of Education, Katsina-Ala, Dr Hans Senwua, a close friend of Governor Suswam, was abducted in his Katsina-Ala residence,  but released after a week in the hands of his abductors. In that incident, accusing fingers were pointed at the APC in the state.”

  • ‘PDP plans to rig by-election’

    ‘PDP plans to rig by-election’

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Niger State said yesterday that it had uncovered plans by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to use ambulances and bullion vans to smuggle fake ballot papers to four local governments for the August 30 by-election.

    It alleged that the PDP planned to convey the fake ballot papers in coffins to Muyan, Rafi, Suleja and Tafa local governments, 48 hours to the election.

    APC Publicity Secretary Mr. Jonathan Vatsa, urged members and the electorate to be vigilant.

    He also alleged that there were to arrest prominent members of the party before the by-election.

    He said the posters and billboards of their candidate, David Umaru, a lawyer, had been destroyed.