PDP crisis: Nobody can stop our convention, says Wike
By Gbenga Omokhunu, Abuja Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister Nyesom Wike has said nobody can stop the forthcoming national convention of the People Democratic Party (PDP) scheduled for Sunday, March
By Gbenga Omokhunu, Abuja
Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister Nyesom Wike has said nobody can stop the forthcoming national convention of the People Democratic Party (PDP) scheduled for Sunday, March 29.
Wike said all party members should be concerned with genuine reconciliation of members who are willing to embrace peace and unity.
The FCT minister said the reconciliation talks with the Tanimu Turaki-led faction would not stop the national convention scheduled for March 29 in Abuja.
The minister said he opposed some members who would want to use the party to obtain tickets and later abandon the party.
Wike spoke at the 107th National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting in Abuja.
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The FCT minister assured all party members that his camp was ready to have sleepless night to build the party and secure its future.
Wike said: “Let me also use this opportunity to congratulate the chairman and members of the working committee and all other organs of the party for working tirelessly to see that, by the grace of God, we hold our national convention on March 29 and 30.
“I have said earlier that we’ll continue to build on the unity of this party and, therefore, when two brothers fight, there’s is room for reconciliation.
“You cannot kill yourself. You can only force a horse to the stream… We cannot force the horse to drink water. Continue to build on the unity of this party.
“Let me clear certain things, and I’ve always said so. I don’t like people who will not show concern.
“This is where the party’s leadership is together today. I don’t want those who want to use us, for the purposes of having tickets; and then after that, you dump the party. Let it not be so.
“As I am, we have got to the point where, if anybody believes that any other thing will happen, I want to tell the person it’s not correct. If anybody believes that there’s any other hope aside this place, the person is joking. There is no other hope.
“So, whether you are just hanging on the line, I don’t know if tomorrow something will change. After this NEC meeting, anybody who doesn’t show commitment to the convention, after this convention, don’t come back and tell us that, ‘Oh, I’m fully back.’ No, I will not accept that.
“We must defend our stand. Right from the day we are re-elected, we are supposed to be commending our people. I thank God about what has happened.
“Let me say clearly I became a governor. I was not a senator; I was a minister of state. I resigned to contest for governorship. There was a governor there who felt he must put his own successor. It didn’t happen.
“So, people are always afraid because they don’t have a governor in their state. That is not correct. We didn’t have a governor, but we won a governorship election in my state. Nobody should be afraid that I don’t have a governor.
“Money is not everything in this world. Money has a limitation. Ask yourself: how many governors do we have before 13? Is it not true that they ran away because they were defeated? Yes, they have allocations. Do we have allocations? No. They were the ones accusing me that I am working for APC; and I am here. So, where are they today?
“You see: when you are working with people who don’t have character… I’m not a governor; nobody here is a governor. But the right thing must be done. All those allocations that came are all gone. So, that’s to tell you that money is not everything.
“Unfortunately, I was watching my friend before (Oyo State Governor) Seyi Makinde. When he went to Bauchi State, he said that he had a meeting with me and the President, and I said we have government, we have the judiciary. So unfortunate.
“We also have the judiciary of Ibadan that gave us an ex parte order. Is that not true? So unfortunate. It’s unfortunate: a fight you cannot fight, you started.”
