Fielding GEJ in 2011, 2015 a mistake -PDP

In from Timothy Enietan-Matthews (Nation’s capital) . . .

In what appeared like eating the humble pie, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has apologized to Nigerians, asking for forgiveness over its inability to meet the aspirations of Nigerians for the 16 years it was in power.

The party, through the chairman of its National Conference Planning Committee, High Chief Raymond Dokpesi, also admitted that it was wrong to have fielded former President Goodluck Jonathan for the 2011 and 2015 presidential elections.

Stating that the PDP was aware that Nigerians were angry with it because of some actions it took in the past 16 years when it was in power, Dokpesi said the party was ready to mend fences and this was why it was organising a national conference where all issues affecting the former ruling party would be discussed.

Dokpesi, a PDP stalwalt from Edo State, stated this at a news conference in Abuja on Tuesday to brief the media on its national conference. Also present at the briefing were members of the conference planning committee.

Read also: How Oritsejafor deceived GEJ to contest 2015 poll –Okotie

According to him, the defeat of the party is attributable to some errors committed by the party and its leadership.

He said: “We are aware that there were errors we made. We admit that we made mistakes and we have not met the expectation of Nigerians and we tender unreserved apologies for these mistakes.

“You must have seen the Ike Ekweremadu report on why we are apologising. There was no internal democracy, there was impunity within the party and there was no level-playing ground for members of the party.

“Zoning principles of the party were abandoned and a gamut of all other issues, which will come out during the conference and for all these and the people who have been offended, for people whose toes were stepped upon, we also tender unreserved apology.

“These are the reasons why we are begging and apologising. We want to assure every founding member of the party that we deviated from their visions, and that’s why we are going to have all our founding fathers like Adamu Ciroma, Dr. Alex Ekwueme and other members of the G.34, to come and talk to us at the conference.

“For every and any mistake we have made, I therefore say, we tender our unreserved apologies.”

On whether the mistakes included the candidature of former President Goodluck Jonathan in the 2011 and 2015 presidential elections, Dokpesi said it was wrong for the party to have abandoned zoning in preference for the former President, adding that the party ought to have allowed the northern part of the country to complete its term when former President Umaru Yar’Adua died in 2010.

“The party in 2010 and 2011, made the first round of mistake of not allowing the north to complete its term.

“That was when the party gave a special favour for the then President who came to complete the term of Yar’Adua to be allowed one term to finish.

“The same small leaders of the party came forward in 2015 to state again and refused to return the party to allow the north to field the party’s presidential candidate, they manipulated the party to do the same.”

Continuing, Dokpesi said: “Make no mistake, the PDP is aware that there were errors made along the way. We admit that at certain times in our past, mistakes have been made, we did not meet the expectations of Nigerians.

“But the past is exactly what it is. While we should not forget the past and its errors, We must look forward and begin to show true leadership within and outside our party.”

He pledged that through the forthcoming conference, the party would be reinvigorated, re-engineered and restructured.

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