Former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olabode George, has been affirmed as the leader of the party in Lagos State.
The affirmation came on Tuesday when all groups and interests in the Centre of Excellence were reconciled in Lagos.
The party also inaugurated Apex/Leaders Advisory Council for state and local government units.
The PDP said “the time has come for the party to take over the reins of leadership in Lagos State”, hence, the adoption of selfless team spirit after a successful reconciliation.
The meeting, which validly adopted George as apex leader following a motion moved by Mr Babatunde Olanrewaju and supported by Prince Aloysius Okafor, also administered oath of allegiance on members of the apex council.
Other members of the council are Chief Dapo Sarumi, Senator Kofo Bucknor Akerele, Dr. Remi Akitoye, Chief (Mrs) Aduke Maina,, Chief (Mrs) Onikepo Oshodi, Dr. Abimbola Ogunkelu, Engr. Deji Doherty, Prince Muiz Dosunmu, Rahmon Owokoniran, Alhaji Tanwa Olusi, among others.
Some of the members of Leaders Advisory Council in local governments are General Tajudeen Olanrewaju, Dr. Ade Dosunmu, Mr. Jimi Agbaje, Prince Uthman Shodipe Dosunmu, Mrs. Adewunmi Williams, Hon. Setonji Koshoedo, Chief Imam Akorede, Alhaja Tanwa Olusi, Hon. Dakova David Vaughan, Prince Muyiwa Fafowora, Alhaja Bola Ajibola, among others.
In his acceptance speech, George stated that it was a new dawn for the party in Lagos, even as he said he took time to apologise to all those he might have offended directly or indirectly, and said that he had accepted the apologies of those people who felt that they offended him, one way or the other.
He said: “PDP is one and after today, no distraction from outside the party will be tolerated. PDP doesn’t have any faction. Those who flout party’s constitution will be sanctioned. Let us rise above pettiness, disunity, lack of commitment and work as a team”
Lamenting on the state of the nation and why the 2014 National Conference should be revisited, the Atona Oodua of Yorubaland said “The electoral process must be changed. The report of 2014 confab must be revisited. The future of this country is bleak. We must devolve power from the centre to states.
“The National Assembly must send the new technology to electronic voting to the President for his signature. We must redesign the constitution in such a way that there must be respect for everyone if we want to progress as a nation”.
While urging members of the council to return to their local government areas and preach message of reconciliation to all members, he stressed that the party would contest the forthcoming local government elections even though it was aware that the election will not be credible.
A member of the party’s National Board of Trustees, Chief Aduke Maina, said the elders had met previously to tidy up the reconciliation, adding that everyone was going to work towards the progress of the party so that the party would begin to win elections in the state.
Corroborating Maina, a former Minister of Integration in Africa, Dr. Abimbola Ogunkelu, said the party and its leadership are on the same page ahead of the 2023 elections.
On the local council polls, he said it was no longer news that former Lagos State Governor, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, controls everything in the state and has allegedly manipulated the results of elections in the state.
He said, “We will try our best in the election and I can assure you that it is not everybody that is a member of Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission (LASIEC) that is bad. There are past members of LASIEC that have been upright. So, we look forward to a credible election”.
