Obasanjo Still in Spirit with PDP, Says Lamido

Visits Okowa, Delta PDP chairman Says APC elevated lying to level of culture

Frontline presidential aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Sule Lamido, has said members of the PDP do not nurse hard feelings against former President Olusegun Obasanjo on account of his reported unsavory comments about the ability of the party and the All Progressives Congress (APC) to provide effective political leadership in Nigeria.

He said the former president remains a member of the PDP because he still has the party’s spirit in him despite his harsh words for the party, describing his much-talked-about criticism of the two leading parties as simply “fatherly advice that should be taken in good faith.”

The presidential hopeful noted that it was in the character of Obasanjo to speak out his mind on any national issue he felt strongly about.

“You see, Baba na Baba”, he said in Pidgin English, adding “He is father, he speaks as a father; it does not mean he hates the PDP. Baba (Obasanjo) is still a member of the PDP; he has the PDP spirit that believes in the unity of the people of Nigeria irrespective of differences in ethnic or cultural group or religion.”

Lamido made the remarks yesterday when he paid a courtesy call on Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State at the Government House Asaba in continuation of his nation-wide tour for consultations with PDP stakeholders towards his 2019 presidential ambition.

Lamido, who is Nigeria’s former foreign affairs minister and erstwhile governor of Jigawa State, also visited the state Chairman of the PDP, Chief Kingsley Esiso, and members of the state working committee as well as senatorial and some local government chairmen of the party.

He lamented that the APC has practically run the country aground with its divisive and propagandist style of governance which has increased animosity of Nigerians to other Nigerians to a level unprecedented in the history of the country.

He said it was clear as day that the longsuffering citizens of Nigeria were tired of the APC, which he said has “elevated lying to the level of a culture (as) in APC, the hallmark is lies,” stressing that Nigerians were yearning for a president who see them first as human beings.

Earlier, Lamido intimated Okowa about his 2019 presidential aspiration, saying he believes he has all it take to be president of African’s most populous nation because he knows the country and the people well to lead the nation to grow and develop, saying God has given him a heart with the milk of human kindness which would spur him to take Nigeria out of the present crushing hardship.

He pledged his readiness to work with other PDP aspirants and leaders to ensure that national unity and focus remain the hallmark of the party as it braces up to tackle issues of transforming the nation by assuming power again at the centre.

In his response, Okowa called for love, commitment and focus among members of the PDP to galvanise the party to resounding victory in 2019, noting that the PDP needed to remain united and committed and carry all its leaders and members along so as to achieve victory in future elections.

Okowa said: “I am happy that our party is rediscovering itself after our successful convention in which the leaders were able to come out as one united family, committed to the future of the nation and the party, our party is founded on love and commitment, we need to stay focused and sit down and take decisions as a party. We must start a relationship among our leaders to enable us talk about issues of our party and the nation and reassure Nigerians that we are truly prepared to lead this nation and take it to greater heights.”

The governor called for support for the various organs of the party so as to achieve success stressing “our collective strength will move the party forward to victory”.

While commending Lamido for being a committed and consistent party man, Okowa emphasised that only a presidential candidate that emerged from the party structure would be able to lead the party forward and wrest power from APC in 2019.