National Chairman of the Peoples Democractic Party, (PDP), Prince Uche Secondus Thursday boasted that members of the opposition party are no longer intimidated by alleged arrests and muscling by the ruing party, adding that it was battle ready to take over power in 2019.
“We want to reiterate that we won’t be intimidated by incessant arrests and muscling by the ruling government. History of Nigeria has shown that everyone who is persecuted and jailed ended up becoming the next President, because many of our past leaders have been jailed. So go ahead and arrest and jail all of us. We can’t anymore be intimidated by such arrests, ” he said.
Secondus also declared that open primaries will be conducted prior to every stage of elections in Nigeria, especially in Ekiti state.
The newly installed PDP chairman who spoke in Ado Ekitii, the Ekiti state capital during his first official visit while presenting party flags to chairmanship and councillorship candidates of the party ahead of Saturday’s local government election in the state, said the party under his watch would not allow imposition of any aspirant.
Secondus urged party members in Ekiti to remain resolute in supporting the party adding that members at the grassroot would be allowed to determine their fate and elect or choose their representatives without undue interference from the national body.
The opposition leader said primaries preceding every election,, including those of Governorship, Senate and House of Representatives, among others shall henceforth be well monitored by credible party officials to be deployed from the national headquarters.
He, however added a caveat that once such a well televised and open primary had been held,and members freely choose who to fly the flag of the party, the national Secretariat of the party shall not be liable into entertaining complaints or protests from aggrieved persons.
Secondus who commended Fayose for dotting every landscape of the state with developmental projects urged Ekiti people to compensate him and his administration with votes at both the Saturday’s council election and the gubernatorial coming up in July next year.
He urged all those still interested in one elective office or the other in the state not to lose hope, but come out to participate in such primaries, if they are sure of their popularity and ability to deliver.
Governor, Ayo Fayose expressed gratitude to Secondus and his team for making Ekiti state local government election their first public assignment after their emergence as new party leaders.
He promised the party national leadership that going by the volume of his administration’s development agenda, all the 16 local government councils as well as the 177 wards would be delivered to the party this Saturday as well as next governorship election in July next year.
