A national chairmanship aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party, Dr.
Raymond Dokpesi, has warned that the party may go into oblivion if it
does not get it right during its forthcoming national convention.
Dokpesi, who is from the South-South, called on the leadership of the
party to reform it, otherwise, it will not survive its current crisis.
He said, “The party will break and disappear into oblivion. I tell
you that if the party does not reform now, it won’t survive the crisis,”
he told journalists in Abuja on Thursday.
“Time has come for the party to determine its future. I represent
reform. If we love the party and if we want to move the party forward
and also deepen democracy then we have to leave the old way of
overbearing, imposition that brought us to where we are. We are hungry
for a new way of doing things.”
Dokpesi denied claims that he was engaging in anti-party activities
by contesting in the elections, scheduled to take place at the national
convention of the party in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, on Wednesday,
August 17.
The national leadership of the party had zoned the office of the national chairman to the southern part of the country.
However, leaders from the zone met and zoned the office to the
South-West, a zone that has yet to produce the national chairman of the
party in its 18-years history.
But Dokpesi said it was wrong for the zonal leaders of the PDP to put
aside the decision of the national body by going ahead to further zone
the position.
He said, “The constitution of the party vested the power to zone on
the National Working Committee as represented by the Sen. Ahmed
Makarfi-led caretaker committee.
“It zoned the office to the entire south. When you are in government,
you can do micro zoning, but now you have to look for the best. The
zoning of the president was done to the entire north. The office had not
been zoned to any of the three zones from the north.
“Makarfi has said so, that anyone who feels he can win the election and knows he is capable of leading the party, is free.
“I have visited about 24 states when that micro zoning was done. Now,
I have covered 34 states and FCT, leaving Taraba and Adamawa States.”
The businessman insisted that he remained the best candidate for the
job because, according to him, he does not belong to any faction in the
party.
He said his past and present contributions to the party stood him out among other candidates gunning for the position.
He appealed to the governors, leaders of the party to allow the
delegates to the convention choose their leaders without interference.
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