The Board of Trustees of the People’s Democratic Party has confirmed a former Senate President, Adolphus Wabara, as its Chairman.
The BoT, at its 76th Meeting on Tuesday, also confirmed a former Kaduna State governor, Ahmed Makarfi as Secretary “in line with the provisions of the Constitution of the PDP (as amended in 2017)”.
The confirmation of Wabara came about 18 months after he was appointed as the interim chairman of the PDP BoT, following the resignation of Walid Jibrin in 2022.
In its communiqué issued at the end of the meeting on Tuesday, the PDP BoT expressed “deep concerns over the biting economic hardship, high cost of essential life-enhancing commodities and alarming food scarcity in the country occasioned by the ill-implemented policies of the APC administration and which are already causing restiveness and agitations in various parts of the country.
“The BoT is alarmed by the worsening insecurity in the country as evident in the rising cases of mass killings, banditry, kidnap for ransom and acts of terrorism by assailants who are emboldened by the manifest laidback attitude of the APC administration to issues of security, especially in the last nine months.
“The BoT is seriously worried over the fall of the Naira to an abysmal N1, 500 to the dollar, incessant increase in the pump price of fuel which now sells for over N700 per litre with long queues in various parts of the country.
“The BoT calls on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to know that the situation in the country has become unbearable. Mr. President should immediately address the issues of corruption in his administration, worsening insecurity in the country, continuous fall in the value of the Naira, high fuel price, unbearable food scarcity and unemployment in the country,” the communiqué read.
Also, the Chairman of the PDP Governors’ Forum and Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed, has urged members of the party to close ranks, emphasizing the presence of hunger and anger in Nigeria.
The PDP governors highlighted the significant surge in abduction cases and various other crimes, as well as the escalating food prices.
They asserted on Tuesday that Nigeria, under the leadership of President Bola Tinubu’s APC-led Federal Government, closely resembles the situation in Venezuela.
Chairman of the PDP Governors’ Forum, who stated this, Tuesday, during the party’s 76th Board of Trustees meeting at Wadata Plaza in Abuja, emphasized that there is no room for division in the major opposition party.
He urged party leaders to be strategic in promoting the party’s agenda to rescue Nigerians from suffering.
He explained, “We are working very hard behind the scenes. Some of the strategies have been revealed by the BOT chairman himself. We need to be strategic to prevent this country from becoming a one-party state and ensure that we all emerge victorious.
“The governors are determined to reposition the party and minimise the rancour and division that had characterised the PDP in the past due to the party’s size and our diverse interests. We certainly don’t have the luxury of indulging in that.
“The country is suffering. There is a lot of hunger and anger in Nigeria. For the third time, the country is looking up to us. We cannot continue to be the weeping boys or girls. We must close ranks, give the benefit of the doubt to each other, and give the benefit of the doubt to the party. That’s why we give them the vote of confidence despite anything.
“So that the various organs of the party, from the caucus to the BOT and National Executive Council, will be able to make decisive decisions on all issues for the time being. So we are with you. Reconciliation must take place. Most people have their groups here and there, but certainly, it is not the time for that.
“I am here to let you know that the governors are with you. We are ready to provide an alternative to Nigerians. There appears to be no good governance in the country, and we have said it yesterday. We will provide vibrant opposition to the current administration so that at the end of the day, we are not going to do it out of sentiment. We’ll do it with insight and knowledge.”
On his part, the PDP acting National Chairman, Umar Damagum, said that the best time to rebuild and reposition the party is now.
Damagum, who assured of the NWC’s commitment to building the party, emphasized that all hands must be on deck to reposition the party.
He stated, “Now that all 2023 election petitions are resolved, there is no better time to begin rebuilding the party than now.
“I also want to remind our BoT members that the task of rebuilding this party extends beyond the NWC. We are all stakeholders, and wherever you find yourself, you don’t have to wait for the NWC to speak up to protect the party; it is a collective responsibility.”
Those in attendance were former governors Ahmed Makarfi (Kaduna State), Olagunsoye Oyinlola (Osun State), Sule Lamido (Jigawa State), Attahiru Bafarawa, and former Minister of Special Duties and Secretary of the PDP BoT, Kabiru Turaki.
Others included the National Secretary, Sam Anyanwu, the National Organizing Secretary, Umar Bature, former Minister of Police Affairs, Adamu Maina Waziri, former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Aminu Bashir Wali, and the immediate past PDP National Secretary, Ibrahim Tsauri, among others.
