•Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State
Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State has bemoaned the defection of governors from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), saying although there are only two governors in the party, he is not bothered.
On Monday, Governor Dauda Lawal of Zamfara State announced his resignation from the PDP, leaving the Bauchi State Governor Bala Mohammed and Makinde as the only PDP governors, reports Daily Trust.
Addressing members of the Expanded meeting of the Board of Trustees, BoT in Abuja yesterday, Makinde said what is happening in the party is a challenging period for PDP leaders and members and also a challenging “period for democracy in Nigeria.”
Makinde said he has been speaking with people that should know “who have been involved in the political evolution of this country. And none of them have seen a political landscape like what we are witnessing today. I can only say, we are only two remaining, but we are not bothered.”
He noted that “when the story of this period is told, when the story of democracy in Nigeria is told, they will find us on the side of the people. So please, I can only say that this period will also go away. It will pass away.
“So whatever role we want to play as individuals and collectively as a party, we must be conscious of what history is going to record against or for us for this period.”
On his part, former Senate President Adolphus Wabara said there was need to find solution to what is happening, adding that the BoT considers the recent Appeal Court judgment as an order for the party to begin again.
“An order for the party to begin again. We are more, we respect the law. So this is an opportunity for us to begin again. And that’s why we are all here.”
He said the meeting was not for speech making, but a day “that we have to be very serious with the decisions we are going to arrive at as we’ve always done with the Board, we obey the Constitution. We must work in accordance with the Constitution. And you can never go wrong if you abide by the Constitution and the rule of law.
“We should be very brief with our thoughts. Once we get the briefing of this expanded process meeting, the Board will meet to take its decision.”
He added that the whole idea of what is happening “is to edge us out, but we will find our way, if we have an open mind. We should, in these meetings, keep an open mind and see how we can get ourselves back on track.”
