Peoples Democratic Party Meets Former Governors, Ministers, Admits Mistakes

The leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has met with former governors and ministers of the party, promising to make amends for the mistakes made by the party.

The PDP national chairman, Tanimu Turaki, who addressed the former governors and minsters at the gathering in Abuja, said his leadership is planning to take the party back to the people by ensuring that things are done differently.

Turaki said the former ministers and governors contributed to PDP’s legacies in the 16 years the party was in power.

Turaki, who said the party’s legacies are still standing, added that in spite of “great efforts” to malign PDP, “Nigerians have remained consistently nostalgic about the bond and relationship that we built with them over those glorious 16 years.”

“It is on record that PDP grew Nigerian economy. We pulled this country out of debt burden. We were able to build infrastructure. We built strong institutions that today have strengthened what governments at various levels are doing, be it in terms of project execution or monitoring, be it in terms of war against corruption, and so many areas,” he added.

Turaki, however, admitted that the former ruling party has made mistakes, adding that the essence of the gathering was to strategise on taking the party back to Nigerians.

“I want to say that this meeting is going to be a family meeting. And the implication of having a family meeting is that we look at ourselves face to face and we tell ourselves the truth.

“Yes, mistakes have been made. But we are human. We are not infallible.

“But the strongest thing about us in PDP is that we admit that mistakes have been made. And having admitted that mistakes have been made, it means then that we now are ready to correct those mistakes. So this will be a no-hold-back meeting,” he noted.

Speaking for the former PDP ministers, the chairman of the forum, Ibrahim Shekarau, said many Nigerians are begging to return to pre-2015 when the APC took power at the centre.

The former Kano State governor said Nigerians have experienced APC’s leadership of the country and are now in a position to take a decision.

He charged party members to be courageous, committed , and determined because the current national leadership has shown that it can deliver the party in 2027.

On his part, chairman of the forum of former PDP ministers, Dr. Babangida Aliyu, said the party must go back to the people.

Aliyu, a former Niger State governor, said Nigerians have been cursing the country’s leadership since 2015, because they are not happy with what’s happening.

He added, “They say in some traditions not to abuse dead people. But if a dead man has done something wrong to you, abuse him because that is the evidence that will be used in judging him in the hereafter.

“Therefore, it is our responsibility today to ensure that by 2027, we have done so well enough to be able to give succor, to be able to give hope, to be able to help Nigerians,” he said.