Chuks Okocha
12 March 2008
Lagos — The new National Chair-man of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Prince Vincent Ogbu-lafor, yesterday took over the mantle of leadership from the former chairman of the party, Dr. Ahmadu Ali, with a pledge to be "101 per cent loyal" to President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua.
He also said the new PDP national executive committee was carefully selected to save the party and democracy in Nigeria.
Speaking at the hand-over ceremony in Abuja, Ogbulafor said: "The incoming national executive committee has been very carefully selected to serve this party and to make sure the principle of democracy is sustained."
Ogbulafor's election as the new PDP chairman was sealed by the governors who anointed him for the job after dumping the two front-runners in the race, Dr. Sam Egwu and Chief Anyim Pius Anyim, at the eleventh hour.
President Yar'Adua later consented to the governors' choice following which Ogbulafor was ratified at the party's national convention last Saturday in Abuja as new chairman.
Apart from pledging total loyalty to Yar'Adua, the new chairman also re-assured the President of unalloyed support to his administration and the seven-point agenda.
He said: "I remain hundred and one per cent loyal to the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. You as members of the party will join us in this loyalty.
"This executive will ensure the rule of law, we will make sure that the constitution of the party and that of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is respected.
"We have been carefully selected to carry this party forward and we are assuring you that we shall be very close to you. This party is yours: don't let anything happen to it."
On the relationship between the party and the National Assembly, Ogbulafor said: "We shall make sure that the National Working Committee works hand in hand with the National Assembly. We shall make sure that there is peace and harmony between the executive and the legislature and make sure that the party stands up to its responsibility, but we cannot do it without you."
Apparently aware of the seeming poor condition of service for workers at the PDP national secretariat, Ogbulafor said he would ensure maximum comfort for the staff.
According to him, "we shall make sure that your welfare is well taken care of, because it is when your welfare is guaranteed that you would give the party the best."
This suddenly fired up the workers who began chanting solidarity songs for the new PDP chairman.
The workers went into songs like "You are the one we are waiting for; you are God-sent and so on."
Ogbulafor who described PDP as the house built on the hill, which can never be hidden, asked the staff to be loyal and dedicated to their duties.
He told the jubilant members of the party that he would not like to be remembered by the negative side of history, stating, "we shall do our best to move this party forward in line with the concept of rule of law.
"Show us love, we promise to do our best. Don't let us belong to the negative side of history."
Earlier while handing-over, the former chairman took time to chide his predecessor in office, Chief Audu Ogbeh, saying Ogbeh handed over to him just a piece of paper and that it was Ogbulafor who gave him a detailed handover note.
Ali said there was nothing in the national secretariat that Ogbulafor did not know, as he was the one that handed over to him.
The former chairman described the period when Ogbulafor left PDP as national secretary to his assumption of office as national chairman as temporary.
Ali also informed the new members of the executive that the party had paid for their present office including the legal fees of N35 million and told them that PDP was at the verge of building its own twelve-storey building at the Central Business Area of Abuja.
The hand-over ceremony was attended by several PDP officials and all members of the new National Working Committee.
The ceremony was almost turned into a carnival of sort when the staff of the secretariat began singing songs in honour of Ogbulafor, describing him as the "Prince of Peace in PDP."
Every move made by Ali was, however, booed by the workers.
Meanwhile, Ogun State Governor, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, has given further insight into why Ogbulafor emerged as a consensus candidate.
Former president Olusegun Obasanjo had supported ex-governor of Ebonyi State, Egwu, for the PDP chairmanship slot.
Daniel, the governor of Obasanjo's home state, defended the adoption of Ogbulafor by the PDP governors, saying they arrived at the decision because they believed a neutral candidate was what the party needed to move it forward.
The selection of a neutral candidate, he said, would reduce rancour and unhealthy rivalry in PDP.
The governor said nobody moved against the interest of either the former president or other aspirants that vied for the various positions at the convention.
Daniel spoke at the investiture of Mr. Kadri Adebayo Adeola as the 12th President of the Association of Consulting Engineers of Nigeria (ACEN), which took place at Agip Hall, Muson Centre, Lagos.
On whether consensus arrangement was a threat to democracy, the governor said: "I didn't see a threat. I saw democracy at work. As you are probably aware, consensus I think is part of democracy. This was a situation were people were expecting chaos and people spoke with themselves and I think there were quite a number of consensus and we had a very peaceful convention. Really, I don't know what the problem is about that."
On why they moved against Obasanjo in the election, he said: "No, nobody moved against anybody's interest. It was an issue of consensus. They had so many strong candidates and I think that some people felt that it was better in order to reduce rancour and rivalry to look for a neutral person. So, it wasn't a question of moving against the former president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo."
The governor had earlier condemned the penchant for everything foreign by Nigerians, saying it was not only an error but also a major setback to the development of local content in the country.
According to him, developing countries such as China and Singapore were today developed countries because they believed in themselves.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2008 This Day. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
