PDP Youth Group Demands Midterm Convention
A group, the PDP Young Integrity Group, has called on the Peoples Democratic Party National Working Committee to ensure it holds a midterm convention as part of measures to achieve genuine reconciliation in the party.
A statement signed by the group’s spokesperson, Johnson Adamu, obtained in Osogbo, the Osun State capital, on Friday, noted that since the completion of the 2023 general elections, it has consistently advocated for genuine reconciliation in PDP to reposition it for future elections.
It also identified the lack of political inclusiveness in the build-up to the last election as one of the factors standing in the way of entrenching genuine reconciliation among party leaders.
The group further noted that the present composition of the PDP national leadership structure was not only flawed but was also at variance with the PDP Constitutional provisions on power rotation.
The statement further read in parts, “For instance, the Acting National Chairman of PDP, Umar Damagum, is from the North; the PDP presidential candidate is from the North; and the Chairman of the PDP Governors’ Forum, Senator Bala Mohammed, is also from the North, among others. We wish to use this avenue to appeal to the patriotic leaders in our party to sacrifice convenience for PDP to live.
“The reconciliation that we seek shall be established on the premises of equity and justice. By October 31, 2023, the present NWC members would have spent two years in office, considering when they were elected into office, and that will qualify the party for a midterm convention as provided in our party constitution.
“Section 47(3)(4) of the PDP constitution provides that a midterm convention be conducted to enable the party congress to assess and pass a vote or no vote of confidence on the national executive members of the party.
“The midterm convention or congress will also serve as a medium to constitutionally address the lopsidedness in the PDP leadership nationwide. Owing to the fact that the PDP presidential ticket resides in the North, it is only fair and just to work and support the balance in the leadership structure of the party without reservations.”
It however declared readiness to expose injustices in the party and encouraged PDP members never to give up on the party.
