Yar’Adua’s associates unite, plan for 2015
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OBIORA IFOH 
Prominent politicians, including chieftains of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Chief Tony Anenih, Alhaji Lawal Kaita and Ambassador Yahaya Kwande, met last week to resuscitate the Peoples Democratic Movement, PDM, and to plan ahead of the 2015 general elections.
The meeting, tagged “A reunion/rejuvenation meeting” of the PDM, and which was held at the Shehu Yar’Adua Centre, Abuja, was to provide a forum for the reunion of old members of the movement and also bring on-board new members.
The group also presented a road map for its immediate future activities, among which is a proposed national summit on “The state of the nation” scheduled to hold in the last quarter of 2012.
The movement resolved to rekindle the spirit of national unity, promotion of peace and good governance among its members.
A communiqué issued at the end of the meeting stated that delegates from all the 36 states of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, were in attendance.
Also present at the meeting were key leaders, including Chief Bode Ajewole, Mr. Godie Ikechi, Sen. Abubakar Mahdi, Murtala Shehu Yar’Adua, Dr. Etim Amba, Alhaji A. A. Matawallen Hadeija, Chief Ejiofor Onyia, Hon. Dubem Onyia, Dame Titi Ajanaku, Alhaji Bashiru Yusuf Ibrahim, Prince Tonye Princewill and Otunba Oluponle Ebo.
The statement noted that the PDM was a national “consciousness movement,” pioneered by the late Shehu Musa Yar’Adua for promotion of the core ideals of democracy; sustenance of and support for peaceful co-existence among the diverse groups in the country; bridge building among the diverse segments of the country; promotion of good governance and sustainable development of Nigeria.
Goodwill messages were presented by eminent members of the movement from all the geo-political zones.
Representatives of women and youths also delivered goodwill messages at the meeting. Contributions from the floor were also received on the way to strengthen the movement.
Tributes were paid to the late Yar’Adua, the founder of the movement, for the supreme sacrifice he made in furtherance of unity and democracy in Nigeria as well as to other departed leaders of the movement.
A source told National Mirror that the meeting was convened to resuscitate the once vibrant and revered political machinery of the late Yar’Adua ahead of the coming general elections.
The source said that the new PDM was being anchored on the vibrancy and resourcefulness of younger politicians within the group to enhance the movement’s reinvigoration, complete re-engineering and to make it more acceptable to Nigerians.
Sources said that Chief Bode Ajewole and Godie Ikechi, the group’s new chairman and secretary, might be assisted by PDM leaders including one-time Foreign Affairs Minister of State and a PDP chieftain from Enugu State, Chief Dubem Onyia; son of the late Musa Yar’Adua and PDM founder, wife of the former Adamawa State governor, Alhaji Murtala Yar’Adua; Mrs. Zainab Boni Haruna, Alhaji Bashir Yusuf and Prince Tonye Princewill in the task of repositioning PDM.
Meanwhile, PDP yesterday expressed shock at what it dubbed “continued incitement of the people” allegedly by former Head of State and the presidential candidate of the Congress for Progressive Change, CPC, in the 2011 general election, Maj.-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (rtd), asking him not to think that Nigerians had forgotten how he dealt with them when he ruled the country.
The ruling party asked him to show statesmanship in his assessment of the contributions of the PDP-led government to the cause of democracy and good governance, stressing that under Buhari’s watch, several people were incarcerated in prison for simply expressing their views, as Buhari is doing today without being hounded.
PDP expressed worry that Buhari could be telling lies and deceiving people just to score political points and advance his “selfish interests.” The party challenged any political party or alliance, to produce Buhari at the next presidential election and face another “shameful defeat.”
In a statement issued by the National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Chief Olisa Metuh, the party said that political differences notwithstanding, it expected Buhari, as an elder statesman and a former Head of State, to acknowledge the significant progress that Nigeria has made in internalising democratic culture since the return of democracy in 1999.
Metuh said: “There is still room for improvement no doubt, but Nigeria under the PDP has recorded tremendous gains in terms of advancing the rule of law and the fundamental rights of Nigerians, indeed, in other indices of good governance which democracy is usually expected to guarantee.”
“We recall that while on a visit to Kano last week, General Buhari had said of the PDP-led Federal Government: ‘under normal circumstances we are supposed to work strictly within the provisions of the constitution, but this is Nigeria and nothing is perfect and the only thing they have not tampered with between 1999 to date in Nigeria is the Holy Koran’.
“We are shocked that an elder statesman could paint such an ugly picture, a tissue of lies, of his dear nation just to advance his political fortunes.
“We shudder that a former Head of State under whose watch freedom of expression landed many Nigerians in detention on account of his obnoxious decrees, and who now enjoys such freedom, is utterly ungrateful to the efforts of our great party in advancing the cause of democracy.
“General Buhari, the evangelist of the rule of law, Nigerians wishes to know if unlawful incitement of the populace to violence and attack on the institutions of democracy is part of the rule of law?
“Is the imposition that marked the congresses of the CPC in 2011, which is still hunting the party till date an act in rule of law?
“We wish to advise General Buhari to concentrate on giving Nigerians his alternative ideas and plan of action to what the PDP has at present or even engage us in a public debate on the values of good governance.
“We pray that his party or whatever alliance they are negotiating presents Buhari once more as a presidential candidate so that Nigerians will make their choice.
“However, we wish to remind the former Head of State that Nigerians are not fools and that they know what Nigeria was yesterday especially under regimes like his and what obtains today.
“There is no doubt that even the blind can distinguish between the daylight it is today and the deep dark night it was hitherto,” PDP stressed.
The PDP spokesman asked the leadership of CPC to approach it (PDP) for details if they do not understand the true meaning and principles of good and quality leadership and rule of law.
“Today, criticisms, even destructive ones are hurled at the PDP-led Federal Government and no one is harassed because we uphold the inalienable rights of the people, which is at the heart of democracy. We throw our doors open to criticism so that we accommodate alternative views.
“Today, the PDP loses elections and winners are sworn in and we do not use our incumbency at the centre to truncate the democratic wishes of the people.
“However, in the states held by the opposition parties, local elections are massively rigged as witnessed recently in Lagos and Ogun states and where we defy the odds to emerge victorious like in Imo State, machinery of government is used to frustrate the expressed wish of the people.
“The rule of law if we must state further is that in our drive for transparency and accountability, some leaders of our party have been caught by the long arm of the law and we never obstructed the course of justice.
“Do we need to add that the PDP-led Federal Government does have preference to the rule of law and that is why we enacted the Freedom of Information Act so that every Nigerian will not be in the dark as to how the nation is run, and so that they can be armed to demand for what is right.”
“Must we also tell the leadership of the CPC that in our congresses and convention, deference to the rule of law is the word.
“And that notwithstanding our size, we successfully manage dissenting views and establish strong leadership not dogged by factions like the CPC,” Metuh added.
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