…sets up strategic structure to stall APC’s alleged theft of peoples mandate
Otunba Segun Adewale the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) standard flag bearer for Lagos West Senatorial District has charged stakeholders and members of the party to team up and deliver Nigerians, from the abject penury mode the APC led government has allegedly activated in the country, while inaugurating 5000 Aero 2023 Campaign coordinators on Sunday.
The Lagos West Senatorial Candidate- Otunba Segun Adewale while speaking during the PDP parley held to galvanize and articulate winning strategies ahead of the lifting of the embargo placed on party campaigns, x-rayed the electoral potentials of the party and their ultimate target, citing the fact that he has been robbed of the people given mandates twice and so he is not leaving anything to chance any longer.
“Let’s come together and win election, by the time we made it to government house, we will fix a lot of things, that is our plan, so we are not emphasising on going to meet the leadership, our emphasis is seeing the people here at the wards and zones level that have not been recognised hitherto. They are almost half a million so if you can get just 200,000 of them it is enough for us to win elections. “
“In PDP, my leader is here, our plan is that we want to work with the members.It is much easy working with the members of the party, we have more than half a million members, if you can bring that based on our own data that we have now half a million members in PDP about fifty thousand per local government multiplied by twenty is one million, I am just giving you an estimate that we calculated on our own- half a million.
“APC has never won election in Lagos with a million votes, the last election was 700,000, so that means from PDP there was apathy, which stems from the fact that it is Agbaje’s group, Agbaje must fail, it is Jandor’s group Jandor must fail because if he wins election, Jandor would now be the leader in PDP but they are making a mistake.
“ I am looking at the bigger picture that I can’t because of one person allow millions of Lagosians to continue to be suffering..
“So in PDP a leader would believe that somebody must lose so that his group must remain, forgetting that millions are dying, I know in this local government about ten people that died because they cannot afford 10,000 naira to treat malaria.
Adewale fondly called Aeroland by his loyal followers tasked the over 5000 zonal coordinators gathered in a spacious hall in the heart of Alimosho to think about the importance of collective responsibility geared towards guaranteeing eventual victory at the polls, having appraised his previous exploits, to situate the fact that he most often after winning, got arm twisted by the ruling party.
“So we can win elections inside PDP without even going out, we can raise at least minimum 1000 per wards and we have about 30,000 wards.
“Like I said initially a leader decides that no because a candidate got the ticket but he doesn’t belong to my group that person must lose the election that’s all, it is not as if PDP is not popular.
“APC is not popular at all and that is the reason why APC relied on the collation of results at the ward centres, that is why they have draconian laws because they know that the results can be rigged and it is manual, but right now the introduction of BVAS would change things.
As the 2023 General Elections draws near, Adewale expressed his appreciation over President Mohammadu Buhari’s assent to the new electoral law, noting that the technological advancement brought into play by the introduction of BVAS machine, that afford scientifically accurate data makes the process lots more transparent and sincerely skewed towards restoring of the electoral system’s integrity.
“I did commend President Buhari owing to the new electoral law he signed into law, Nigeria is going to change for the better because right people would now have the opportunity to get into power.
“Our problem is the dearth of leadership in Nigeria,the people that want to serve are just trying to get into politics and governance but most of the times they lost out at the collation centre because in Nigeria if you want to represent your community you have to know a god-father.
“If you have no god father supporting you, you can’t get to the top, so most people that you are seeing now, almost 90 percent of the people ruling us are giving the opportunity by the god-fathers only.
“So it is difficult for the right people whom God called to serve, many of them are not in governance, but with this new law coupled with the BVAS machine, you will be surprised a lot of people that are really called and endowed with the competence to be in governance and politics will now come out and win elections easily.
“For instance I have elections severally, in 2011 I was announced to have won election but at the end of the day they gave it to someone else.
“In 2015 they announced that I won in seven local governments, they held on to three local governments at the end of the day, the three local governments result were more than the seven local governments they have announced, but with BVAS the results is going to be announced at the polling units so you are not going to blame anybody for your failure.
“So I see what Buhari has done overshadow so many of his flaws. This one singular act that will definitely change Nigeria, those clamouring for Obi to come or any other person, one person cannot change Nigeria but with the beavers a lot of people will be in governance.
“This BVAS will right the wrongs from 1960, you will be shocked that a councillor can be there unaided, for instance in Lagos there is no way that you will want to win an election except you compromised the INEC, but now you don’t need anybody just go to the polling units, in fact I really commend and thank President Buhari for what he has done may God continue to bless him.”
Also commenting on the possibility of having an implosion within the ranks of the PDP owing to Governor Wike’s recent outburst, Adewale notes that his present mien is expected because in six months time his tenure as Governor of Rivers State ends and he would have no more relevance if he fails to negotiate appropriately prior to.
He however, affirmed that it is more essential for him to preach the message of cohesion amongst PDP members to herald the desired victory than speaking to the leadership.
“It is going to be difficult for me to talk to the leaders because we have leaders that are above 70 or 80, I can’t be telling my leader what to do. My emphasis now is what I am doing now to go down to the grassroots to the zones talk to members that are still young urging them that we need to come together as one.
“They will take this message back to their leaders that there is no way we can win elections without us coming together. For instance you can see PDP here now, this 5000 people, we have more than 10,000 that we can call in here today but there is no hall that will contain them.
Mr. Taiwo Kuye the Chairman Campaign Council, in his brief take on the matter corroborated Adewale’s stance noting that Lagos is winnable for PDP any day, any time.
“On the crisis, somebody talked about implosion, I don’t think it has gone to that extent. Everybody you see here today are Atikulated, we will make sure we deliver Jandor, we will make sure we deliver Aeroland,we will ensure we deliver all Assembly candidates, we will ensure we deliver the President come February 2023.
Dr. Adebiyi Phillips Director for planning, strategy and education Aero 2023, however noted that managing crisis is key as crisis exist within all other party’s too.
“My message is for the party to manage their crisis, crisis can occur anywhere but the most important things is the ability to manage the crisis. So I want to appeal to our leaders, members and everybody let us bury our hatchet and ego, let’s come together as a body and face the election for the purpose of retooling Nigeria.”
Aero’s Campaign Director General Pastor Abu Ojekere who compared the parley, identified all the political flanks represented in the hall which cuts across the length and breath of Lagos West Senatorial District.
Chief Mrs Dupe Brume the Women Affairs leader Aero 2023 Campaign organisation was also on ground charging all women to ensure they deliver maximally come 2023 general elections.
