Saraki leads Ortom, Tambuwal, Ahmed, others to PDP NEC meeting

It was home-coming for Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, on Thursday in Abuja as he led some governors and lawmakers, who recently defected from the All Progressives Congress (APC), to the 81st National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Abuja.
The meeting, which held at the PDP National Headquarters, was full of drama, jokes and banters as Saraki exchanged greetings with the National Chairman of the party, Prince Uche Secondus, and others.
Secondus, who assured Saraki and other defectors that history would be kind to them for identifying with the people, declared that PDP would defeat APC in the 2019 general elections.

With Saraki were Governors Abdulfatah Ahmed (Kwara), Samuel Ortom (Benue), Aminu Tambuwal (Sokoto), senators and members of the House of Representatives.
Secondus said the bold steps they took would not be in vain.
“The bold steps you took to return to the party where you truly belong, is a sacrifice not for yourself but for Nigeria and history will be fair to you”
Secondus described Saraki as the key to the renewed struggle to free Nigeria.
“Today is the beginning of the great journey to freedom, the great journey to free our people and rescue this country from the damage done to it by the APC in the last three years”.

Secondus expressed regret that agencies of government established to protect the people have been deployed to assault institutions of democracy by the federal government, mentioning incidences involving security agencies in Ekiti, Benue states and the homes of the Senate President and his deputy.
He said that the country is sliding dangerously under the watch of APC federal government “and rather than confront the challenges, they continue to feign ignorance of the situation” as he predicted that “they will remain in aloof until PDP takes over Aso Villa”.
Secondus, who led the members of the NEC to observe a minute silence for souls of innocent Nigerians killed across the country, said that rather than defend the country, security agents have been deployed to harass and intimidate opponents and those with dissenting voices.
While speaking, Saraki said he and his defecting colleagues “are happy to be back home where we truly belong”.
Other speaker expressed happiness at the turn of events but warned that the battle is not over until victory is achieved in February 2019.
Earlier in the day at the commissioning of the national office and the inauguration of the steering committee of the Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP), Secondus charged members of the coalition to be ready for the challenges ahead and “rescue Nigeria from APC damages”.