Th e former behemoth Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) held a non-elective congress last weekend. Although it was geared toward authenticating Ahmed Makarfi ’s leadership for another four months before the main convention, and perhaps for mend-fencing, the opportunity was squandered on the altar of ego-tripping by the very recycled people that nearly killed the once biggest party in Africa. In the past, any gathering of PDP would practically lock down Abuja, but last Saturday’s was uneventful. Talk of power changing hands; the convention was a pitiable shadow of its former self, when viewed from the perspective of its glorious past.
Th e half empty Eagle Square venue of the event could only boast of a handful since many of the players of yore had since jumped ship (from the ailing PDP to the sailing APC). Some serving governors, were absent at a supposed convergence of party men to prove a point that the party is back on a winning way, even though ‘busy bodies’ like Wike and Fayose were visibly present. Th e absence of these governors smacks of something sinister in the offi ng. I thought the survival of their party should be the most auspicious event for them, apart from superintending over the aff airs of their states. For all you know, some already have one leg in PDP and another in APC.
Th e man who squandered the enormous goodwill and boom of his time, Dr Goodluck Jonathan was at his uninspiring best. After he presided over the loss of power of his party, he is now a lone ranger in the rescue eff ort— Obasanjo is sitting on the fence, IBB is no longer very active and ex-vice president Atiku Abubakar is still at a crossroad where to realise his presidential ambition between APC and PDP. By the way, where are General Aliyu Gusau, the Ciromas and the Ekwemes? What of Yar’adua’s political godsons? Have they been eclipsed by APC or they have simply disappeared into thin air? So ultimately, Jonathan is now left alone to carry PDP’s can of worms and its denigrated past. Unfortunately the former president has no wisdom (and vision) to handle the new challenge just as he did not show capacity when he was in offi ce.
With Jonathan as the rallying fi gure, the mini confab could not have fared well. A party in crisis, seeking for acceptability and reconciliation should not engage in frivolities but loads of that were on display on Saturday. Instead of being remorseful, asking for forgiveness and showcasing their roadmap for 2019, the party is still trying to play on people’s intelligence and doing things as usual. Instead PDP is ranting about what they did right, in the name of opposition, although their boldness and temerity fl ow from the lack-lustre APC administration of President Buhari. Even then, I expected the PDP to show indication it had reformed, re-engineered and reinvented; rather, what we saw on Saturday is a party still living in the past, parading and parroting their old slogans, a party that made an ex-convict among its planning committee members and another ex-convict warming up to take over from Makarfi as chairman in the next four months. Imagine Jonathan’s inference to TSA, BVN and others he had the intention of doing but had no courage to implement while Reno Omokri, his spokesperson said even the APC government is also looting the economy, as if looting is so liberalised it is now a competition between the two political parties.
For God’s sake, someone, people, elders, whoever should tell Jonathan to keep quiet if he has nothing to say. When Jerry Gana, was called upon to speak, he impliedly vilifi ed Modu Sherrif. I wonder when the party will get over the Sherrif hangover and move on with genuine reconciliation and action plan. A highly depleted and fractured party should be wooing members back rather than detract from its rank and fi le. It will have done PDP a world of good to see Makarfi and Sherriff walk hand in hand to the convention venue. Th at would have convinced Nigerians that the party has the capacity to put its house in order and could do same if given a second chance. Finally, the parade of old and tired faces that ruined the party and the economy is not a good omen and sign the party is ready for a new narrative.
Th e party needs reorientation and I doubt if the crop of leaders still on parade 18 years after are ready for a new engagement. I would expect the PDP to cast its net wide, in search of emerging thinkers and leaders in all the 36 states and Abuja, incubate them for a few months, to come up with a new roadmap for the party, and eventually unveil them as worthy successors in leadership training to take over from them. People like Omokris, and Lere Yinkas could be in that category instead of wasting their precious time to defend, justify and liken PDP’s form of corruption and impunity to APC’s as if we are in a competition for a loser’s trophy in a world with people that think outside the box, and are prepared to take on the world with new ideas, discoveries and inventions.
At the very least, and despite their wobbly performance, APC emergence threw up new faces in governors Yahaya Bello of Kogi state, Abubakar Sani Bello of Niger state, Muhammed Abubakar of Bauchi state and a whole lot of APC stalwarts hitherto unknown. Th is and more is what PDP should do to avoid the baggage of the past.
