By Kingston Obung
Calabar
As members, aspirants and stakeholders put finishing touches to preparations for a successful Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) national convention in Abuja this Saturday, a candidate to the office of the Legal Adviser, Barr Gabriel Odey, has promised to help in repositioning, rebuilding and to restoring the lost glory of the party, if elected.
In a chat with our reporter in Calabar yesterday, Odey said he was prompted by patriotic zeal, a vision to partner with the other members, national officers and party stakeholders, to ensure that the once biggest party in Africa again takes over the centre stage.
He said that with many decades of experience in legal practice, he would revamp the legal departments of the PDP at the headquarters, state offices and chapters nationwide, and that doing so would help in “enforcement of the party guidelines and compliance with its constitution, and the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, with emphasis on alternative dispute resolution.”
According to him, his service would also help in reducing “unmanageable number of protracted litigation that virtually brought the party to its knees in the past,” stating that “with thirty years of active legal and political experience, and having represented the PDP in over 300 cases across the country in all strata of courts in mainly political cases, I’m well positioned to serve the party.”
The lawyer cum politician explained further that the PDP needs internal democracy to ensure less conflicts and agitations but called on the leadership to give members equal playing ground to aspire and contribute to the growth of the party.
Further, Odey said that the party needs internal democracy so that there would be less conflicts and agitations within the party, adding that all members must be given equal playing ground to aspire and contribute to the growth of the party.
He stressed the need for the party to run an all-inclusive system by giving equal opportunities to women and youths for the development of the party.
“As a gender sensitive social and political activist, I will continue to advocate and support inclusiveness for women. The youth are not too young to run for political offices.
“Our political elders of today started occupying high offices at very youthful age, and today’s young people must be given a chance to play their part towards national growth,” he said.
Odey saw the PDP “undergoing a period of fine-tuning its internal democracy” adding “we are only mid-wifing a process of internal democracy which is naturally characterised by disagreements, negotiations and eventual understanding.”
He said: “PDP is now strong again, and I shall partner with stakeholders to sustain this newfound peace. I stood by the party in its most trying times, and recently up to the Supreme Court. I want to add more value to the electoral fortunes of my beloved Party. Let’s leverage on our present strength to kick APC out of power come 2019.”
