The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, says it is expecting to receive “high-profile” defectors in the next three weeks.
The chairman of the party’s Non-Elective National Convention, Ifeanyi Okowa, who is also the governor of Delta State, said this on Thursday while addressing journalists in Abuja.
Mr. Okowa said the party was preparing to welcome the defectors, but did not disclose their identities or the political parties they are about to desert.
The governor, who addressed the journalists after inspecting the Eagle Square venue of the party’s non-elective convention holding on Saturday, said necessary arrangements had been put in place to ensure a successful event.
“We just came to see what is on the ground. I believe that our people will be safe because we have everything under control, we are not expecting hitches at all.
“We are doing very well as a party and as a committee. In this kind of planning you will have some challenges here and there, but there are solutions being proffered to every one of them and we are confident that we are on the right track and it shall be well on Saturday.
“I believe that a lot of people who thought that the party was going to implode will realise that we are back and ready to offer what it takes to better the lives of Nigerians.
“Many of our members that left earlier due to one form of disagreement or the other will return to their party because the National Caretaker Committee has constituted a Reconciliation Committee as well as a Contact and Mobilisation Committee to reach out to them.
“From the way things are going presently in this country, I believe Nigerians will realise that PDP is the only alternative that can bring Nigeria out of her present economic challenges. We are expecting high profile defectors in the next three weeks or so.”
Mr. Okowa said the party has confidence in its committees and members and is sure the PDP will make a comeback in 2019.
The All Progressive Congress, APC, however waved aside that some of its members would defect to the main opposition party.
APC spokesperson, Bolaji Abdullahi, said,
“Three weeks is not forever; we will wait for it to come. We are confident that we will not lose any of our valuable members to the former ruling party”.
He said the PDP was just making unsubstantiated claim.
In another development, the National Chairman of the PDP National Caretaker Committee, Ahmed Makarfi, said a crisis relating to the South-West zone of the party had been resolved.
“Yesterday, Wednesday, we had a meeting with the leaders from the zone to resolve the issues.”
“As a party, we will continue to work hard not to lose anybody, but we will work harder to bring in more members to the party,” he said in Abuja.
Also on Thursday at the PDP national secretariat at a meeting of the committee set up by the party to screen the seven governorship aspirants for the Anambra State election, the committee expressed displeasure over acts of indiscipline by some of the aspirants.
The Chairman of the Screening Committee, who is also the former Minister of Police Affairs, Adamu Waziri, said it was unfortunate that some of the aspirants had not shown up for the screening, 90 minutes after it was scheduled to begin.
The aspirants screened on Thursday were Okechukwu Emeka, Alex Obiogbolu, Linda Ikpeazu, Oseloka Obaze, Ifeanyi Uba, Stella Oduah and Akolisa Ufodike. http://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/239953-pdp-receive-high-profile-defectors-within-next-three-weeks-okowa.htmlLalasticlala |
