SAN FRANCISCO, January 21, (THEWILL) – A faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) known as the ‘Fresh PDP’ has agreed to collapse it’s structures and re-unite with the mainstream PDP.
This was announced by the National Chairman of the ‘Fresh PDP’, Olukayode Akindele, after a meeting with former National Chairman of PDP, Okwesilieze Nwodo, on Saturday in Abuja.
Notable among those present at the meeting were a member of the party’s Board of Trustees (BoT), Senator Stella Omu and the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbodiyan.
Besides Akindele, other members of the Fresh PDP at the meeting were Duru Ihuoma and Franklyne Edederan who lost out at the party’s December 9 convention.
THEWILL recalls that the faction was formed to protest the result of the party’s National Convention held on December 9, 2017, where Secondus was elected National Chairman of the PDP while the group had vowed that it would announce members of its National Working Committee (NWC) in Abuja on January 22.
Following the meeting, the group agreed to drop its decision to create a breakaway faction of the opposition party and pledged loyalty to the Secondus-led PDP adding that it has dropped its threat to form a parallel NWC of the party in Abuja on Monday.
“I am delighted to tell you that we have collapsed into the mainstream PDP,” Akindele said.
“We have assurances from our leaders and the we will not have a parallel NWC Monday.
“The issue of impunity and imposition had forced us into this situation because in PDP we don’t have any mechanism to address it.
“We have a mechanism for reconciliation. Reconciliation is when you have a dispute.
“But when a criminal political act is committed, then what you need is restitution. But we have received assurances from our leaders here that this will be addressed and today while it marks the end of Fresh PDP, it brings a PDP that is caring and wants to address issues that may affect it in the primaries.
“We have been having these meetings for a long time. An executive meeting was held at 5am today (yesterday) in the interest of the nation and the party so that we won’t have a parallel NWC come Monday.
“That has been cancelled and we have surrendered the list to our leader here and we want to assure that this is the best thing that can happen to PDP.”
Nwodo, while also speaking on collapse of the ‘Fresh PDP’, said that the reconciliation was reached with the knowledge of the Board of Trustees (BoT), the National Working Committee (NWC) and other organs of the party.
“If the Fresh PDP was allowed to form a structure on Monday, they would have given legitimacy to our members to leave the PDP,” he said.
“We have learnt our lessons and we are coming back more prepared and resolute to change the fortunes of this country.
“A lot of people thought our house was divided and was about to cascade down.
“But we want to assure you that by God’s mercy, an internal reconciliation capacity of the PDP, the cracks that you noticed have been completely sealed off.
“Today, by what has happened here, we are sending a powerful signal across the country that the PDP wants to assure all Nigerians that we will not disappoint you.
“The members of the Fresh PDP that is now disbanded are young vibrant politicians. If a leader is leading, and nobody is following, he is taking a walk. PDP is leading and mentoring the young ones to take over.
“The wish of a father is that his offspring will be bigger than him. If a father does not bring an offspring that will surpass him, he is not a good father. It means he doesn’t want his future to be better than his past.”
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