Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) National Chairman, Okwesilieze Nwodo, predicted at the weekend that the party will recapture Ekiti and Ondo States in the 2011 vote and move on from there to rapidly transform the country in all spheres within four years.
He spoke in Iresi, Osun State, where he and his wife, Dorothy, were conferred with chieftaincy titles.
Those who witnessed the ceremony included Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola; his Deputy, Olusola Obada; and PDP National Vice Chairman (South West), Tajudeen Oladipo.
Nwodo lamented the loss of Ekiti to the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), alleging that “The judgment of the Court of Appeal in Ekiti, which awarded the Governorship to another political party was achieved through the use of forged documents.
“We will return all the South West to the mainstream of Nigerian politics because Nigeria cannot move forward without the South West.”
He said he will bring change to the PDP, and the rebranding will take care of education, health, security, and industrialisation.
Nigerians should expect a rapid transformation of the country in the next four years, he added, pledging that the government under President Goodluck Jonathan will touch the lives of everyone.
He stressed, however, that only harmony and accommodation can help the PDP to realise the dream and aspirations of its members.
Nwodo lauded the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) which brought Jonathan to Iresi, where he did his national service in 1981 and “lived comfortably” among the people.
Jonathan, represented by the Minister of State for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Caleb Olubolade, lauded Iresi for creating a park in his name, known as Goodluck Jonathan Garden.
Elsewhere, Oyinlola stated that Jonathan will be the candidate of the PDP in the next election, with Vice President Namadi Sambo as his running mate.
He reiterated on Sunday when the Jonathan Campaign Director, Dalhatu Tafida, visited him in Osogbo that the South West PDP had decided earlier this year to support Jonathan.
“We have considered carefully all the contestants and have come to the conclusion that the Goodluck/Sambo ticket is the best option for the region,” Oyinlola said.
He asked the Goodluck/Sambo Campaign not to dissipate energy in the South West because “we have decided; we are sure of the direction we are going; and there is no doubt about who we are supporting.”
Oyinlola denied speculation about his support for Ibrahim Babangida, saying he could not go against the will of the South West PDP..
“Once we have decided as a group, there is no room for individual preferences.”
Those who joined Oyinlola to host Tafida and his entourage included Obada; state Assembly Speaker, C. Adejare; Senator Iyiola Omisore, and former PDP Governorship candidate, Olu Alabi.
Tafida sought the support of Oyinlola and the state PDP machinery for the Goodluck/Sambo ticket, which he said will stabilise and transform the country.
He maintained that Jonathan and Sambo “are uncontaminated by the mucky politics of our past.”
He updated Oyinlola on the tour of the North by the team which found that the talk of Northern opposition to Jonathan’s aspiration is false.
“Everywhere we went we received assurances of support. We are sure of 18 of the 19 states in the North and 70 per cent of its delegates.”
Tafida also met with Osun PDP leaders, delegates, and religious leaders to seek their support for Jonathan.
He said the Jonathan Campaign expects total support from the South West.
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