North ‘to produce’ PDP’s candidate in 2019

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) post-election review committee chaired by Ike Ekweremadu has recommended that a northerner should fly the party’s flag in the 2019 presidential election.

Presenting the report on Wednesday at the PDP headquarters in Abuja, the deputy senate president said: “It is recommended to the party to strictly apply the zoning principle at all levels.

“In particular, since the last president of PDP extraction came from the southern part of Nigeria, it is recommended that PDP’s presidential candidate in the 2019 general elections should come from the northern part of the country.

“This is in accordance with the popular views expressed in the submissions to the committee. This will also assuage any ill feelings in the North over any perceived breach of the party’s zoning principle.”

The report also recommended an end to the election of the party’s candidates by delegates.

Ekweremadu said: “Our work looked at critical areas and issues such as party structure and administration, party finance, legal framework, primary elections, party’s candidates, conflict resolution, campaign organisations, campaign finance, election day activities, post-election management, third party groups/support groups, among others. We sought to find out how each of these factors has impacted our electoral fortunes and the party’s general well being over the years, particularly in the last general elections.”

The committee, which was inaugurated on May 5, following the dismal performance of the party in the last general election, said the delegate system of electing candidates, who would contest in external elections, had been abused and grossly compromised.

It also upheld the use of zoning “at all levels” in the distribution positions, and suggested that the party be self-funding to preclude external influence.

Presenting the report on Wednesday at the PDP headquarters in Abuja, Ekweremadu said: “Our work looked at critical areas and issues such as party structure and administration, party finance, legal framework, primary elections, party’s candidates, conflict resolution, campaign organisations, campaign finance, election day activities, post-election management, third party groups/support groups, among others. We sought to find out how each of these factors has impacted our electoral fortunes and the party’s general well being over the years, particularly in the last general elections.

“We have made extensive recommendations, the core of which is to end impunity, uphold justice, entrench internal democracy, enhance party administration, promote transparency and accountability, and return the party to its true owners- the people- in accordance with our party slogan and founding principles.

“To this end, we have, among many key recommendations, proposed a nationwide biometric membership registration to align our party records with modern technology and further boost the integrity of our membership records as a precursor to other reforms we have recommended.

“It is recommended that the party should henceforth be self-funding, relying on membership registrations and enforcement of dues and levies as its primary sources of income at all levels in line with the PDP constitution. This is with a view to ending the prevailing situation where those who pay the piper dictate the tune.  We have also recommended that the role of party leader, which has no basis in the constitution of the PDP, should henceforth be discontinued at all levels. This is to strengthen the structure of the party at all levels.

“Furthermore, it is recommended that the party adopt direct primary as the sole means of electing PDP candidates for any election at all levels. The use of delegates has been grossly compromised and abused, and should therefore be discontinued forthwith to return true ownership of the party to the people.”