The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Mr Nyesom Wike, has expressed optimism that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will survive its current adversity.
Wike made this statement while hosting PDP stakeholders from across the 36 states of the federation and the FCT on Monday in Abuja.
Wike emphasided that the PDP should not be allowed to die, describing the stakeholders as committed individuals who believe in the party’s survival
”All of you here are those who are committed to the survival of our party, not just talking on television or in the newspapers, but committed to the party at various levels,” he said.
He stressed the need to respect both the party’s constitution and that of Nigeria, citing the importance of adhering to established rules and principles.
Wike defended the decisions made by the G5 Governors, stating that their actions had stabilised the country and that they stood by their choices.
“You may like us, you may hate us; the truth of the matter is if G5 did not take the decision we took, this country would have been in crisis.
“It doesn’t matter who the beneficiary was, but the right thing had to be done, and we still stand by that decision.
“We have continued to emphasise that the party’s constitution and that of the country should be respected.
“If the party had listened to what we said, we wouldn’t have been where we are today,” he said.
Wike advised PDP members to conduct themselves in a manner befitting an opposition party, avoiding actions driven by impunity and instead focusing on pacifying and uniting party members.
“Ours is to continue to pacify people and bring them together and desist from saying that they should go to hell.
“Let us not allow greed; let us not allow ego to kill out party,” he advised
He cautioned against letting greed and ego destroy the party, emphasizing the need for unity and cooperation.
Former Governor of Benue Samuel Ortom praised Wike’s contributions to the PDP’s growth and suggested that the party’s current challenges stemmed from past mistakes
He said that President Bola Tinubu understands that the country should not be a one-party state, which was why he appointed Wike as the FCT minister.
“For whatever reason, PDP made a lot of mistakes and that is why we are where we are today”, he said.
Some of the stakeholders included former Gov. Ifeanyi Uguanyi of Enugu, former Gov. Samuel Ortom of Benue and former Gov. Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia.
Also at the meeting were the National Secretary of the PDP, Sen. Samuel Anyanwu and former Senate Minority Leader, Sen. Philip Aduda.
Former federal and state lawmakers and some zonal and state party executives among others equally attended the meeting.
