NDC concedes DG campaign council to Obi/Kwankwaso
NDC concedes DG campaign council to Obi/Kwankwaso
The crisis over the naming of the presidential campaign council for the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), has been resolved with the party agreeing to allow the presidential candidate of the party, Peter Obi and his running mate, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso to select key members of the council.
The party had disagreed with a support group within its fold, the OK Movement, over the naming of a presidential campaign council leading to a major crisis.
With the current arrangement, Obi and Kwankwaso are to pick the Director General, Deputy Director General (North), Director of Finance, Deputy director of Finance and Media Director.
National Chairman of the party, Senator Moses Cleopas, at a press conference in Abuja, said the leadership has gone far in its consultations with its presidential and vice-presidential candidates to ensure the process is properly handled and barring any hitch the council would be unveiled on November, 20.
He explained that the series of consultations among the layers of leadership within the party has been responsible for the delay in naming a presidential campaign council adding that the party’s National Working Committee (NWC) is fully in agreement with the decision.
He the presidential and vice presidential candidates of the party, Peter Obi and Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso must be involved in setting up the council because they would lead the campaign and contest the election on the party’s platform.
He said the delay was deliberate to avoid mistakes in forming a campaign structure for an election he described as critical to Nigeria’s future.
The chairman called on Nigerians to disregard reports aimed at creating the impression that the party’s national leader, Senator Henry Seriake Dickson, was not committed to the Obi-Kwankwaso ticket explaining that Dickson had rejected using the his position and leader of the party to become its presidential candidate hence is committed to the success of the party.
He said, “Constitution and inauguration of presidential campaign council is a responsibility of the party at the highest level. But the party itself cannot do that without recourse to the presidential candidate and the vice-presidential candidate.”
He said it is better to get it right than rush and get it wrong.
Cleopas described Obi and Kwankwaso as the best combination for the country, arguing that the ticket had the potential to appeal across religious, ethnic and regional lines and defended the party’s decision not to conduct a competitive presidential primary, saying its leadership had been clear about the direction it intended to take.
“We were clear on the direction we were going, and no regrets,” he added.
The chairman identified young Nigerians as a major reason for the party’s confidence in its presidential ticket, citing the voting demographics presented by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) chairman at a recent event.
He said the NDC was positioning itself as a political platform for younger Nigerians while drawing on the experience of older political leaders.
