As the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) heads into its national convention, a public aff airs commentator, Emmanuel Bello, said the nation was eagerly waiting to see if the party has rid itself of past mistakes and ready to take the leadership of the country again. Bello, a former Commissioner of Information in Taraba state, said that Nigerians still reserve a measure of faith in the party, in spite of the bad press orchestrated mostly by a virulent opposition media. Bello stressed that the PDP remains the most inclusive party in the history of Nigeria’s democracy, judging by its cosmopolitan politics.
Its revival, he said, would put the nation on the path of development and growth again. Speaking with news men in Abuja, Bello, who is also the current Senior Special Assistant to Governor Darius Ishaku on Public Aff airs, said that as soon as PDP gets its acts together, many big wigs, who left the party due to disenchantment, would re- embrace it. He said for many Nigerians, the PDP is still the party of choice.
He said, “if you are students of Nigeria’s politics, you would have noticed that the PDP was the most formidable political machine out there for a long while. Its founding fathers were true democrats. Remember when people like Alhaji Isyaku Ibrahim, late Chief Solomon Lar and the likes were its main inspiration. It was an ideological party too which had the masses at heart. Power was truly in the hands of the people. Th e burst started when the party started taking people for a ride and becoming bellicose. Undemocratic strategies like imposition, doctrines of necessities, supplanting, gangsterism and all the rest took over, with garrison commanders manning out posts. Over night, PDP went from being the peoples dream to their worst nightmare.
And they, sadistically, pushed it out.”Bello said Nigerians are warming up to the party again. “Th e new upswing started after the Supreme Court verdict that recognized the Ahmed Makarfi – led CTC. It was like the rebirth of the party and almost everyone irrespective of their political leaning connected with the justice done. Th at tells you something about the real Nigerian. We love justice as a people. So, if the PDP would do the right thing and not hurt people by promoting what’s unwanted, the party would be on its way
