The Southwest Congress held in Oshogbo yesterday has injected and infused a new mandate of hope and renewal not only in the Peoples Democratic Party but also across Yorubaland.
It has affirmed our commitment to peaceful engagement even when we disagree among ourselves. It has showed that disputes and differences need not fester into violence and communal disruptions.
Yes, democracy is about the pitting of ideas, the grappling with conflicting views and interests. But in the end, there is always an arrival at a consensus building, the initiation of compromise, the settlement of rifts through the pacific largeness of the ballot box.
Well the battle has been won and lost. But there is no vanquished and there is no restrictive winner. The victory belongs to all of us.
This is now the moment to mend the broken places, to reconcile and rebuild without any recourse to personal triumphalism. We are all winners.
I congratulate all the contestants on both sides of the divide. I congratulate all our leaders for their dedication and genuine commitment towards healing and reconciliation.
And most importantly, I congratulate Governor Seyi Makinde for his humility, for his sportsmanship, for his sworn commitment to bring back the Southwest to her deserved leadership status not only in the affairs of our party but in the reckoning of our national template.
A new journey has started. A new hope has risen. The horizon is bright and appealing. Let us all join in steering the ship of state to a safe and strong harbour; steadfast and sure, protected from the tumult of the rough waters.
⁃ Chief Olabode George, Atona Odua of Yorubaland.
