PDP National Convention Holds Tomorrow

OVER 3,000 delegates from across the country are expected to converge in Abuja on Saturday for the non-elective national convention of the main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

It is the first of such gathering since the party survived a protracted leadership crisis only recently brought to an end by the Supreme Court’s decision to reinstate the National Caretaker Committee (NCC) led by Senator Ahmed Mohammed Makarfi.

The convention has as its main agenda the extension of the NCC’s tenure to enable it to execute an elective national convention as well as approving a number of proposed amendments to its constitution.

The Eagle Square, Abuja venue of the event is already wearing a new look with the necessary dais mounted along with other venue decorations.

The National Publicity Secretary of the party, Prince Dayo Adeyeye, confirmed at a world press conference in Abuja on Friday that over 3,000 delegates would attend the convention.

He said the various committees had completed their work and the party was ready to celebrate its survival.

Adeyeye said: “Tomorrow (Saturday) by the grace of God, it’s going to be a carnival-like atmosphere the like of which we have never seen before.

“PDP members are coming to Abuja to celebrate, to tell Nigerians that this party has been reawakened and the party is poised not only to challenge for power but again, to begin a new era of good governance come 2019.

“Our members have started arriving from various states of the federation and we are expecting over 3,000 delegates and all the foreign missions and international observers have been invited.”

He added: “And we have every cause to celebrate. God took us out of a major crisis that almost killed the party.

“The significance of the Supreme Court judgment is not really appreciated by so many people. If that decision had been otherwise, we would not have been here today. There may been no PDP at all as we know it.

“But we give glory to God that with that judgment, the PDP has been given a new lifeline and we believe that we will use that opportunity to reposition the party to do better even better than when we were in government.

“So, we have every cause to celebrate and this is the convention of every member of this party and even Nigerians because Nigerians rejoiced with us when we won at the Supreme Court.