PDP still needs you, Tukur tells Obasanjo

The PDP National Chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, on Saturday said former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s fatherly aura and experience in politics were still required by the party.

Tukur said this in reaction to a letter written to him and President Goodluck Jonathan, dated Jan. 7, 2014, by Obasanjo.

Obasanjo had, in the letter, raised some issues related to the PDP in the country’s South-West geo-political zone.

The letter had also conveyed Obasanjo’s decision to withdraw from participating in the party`s politics at all levels.

“It is an honour that you deemed it fit and proper to intimate me with an issue important to your mind and our party in the south-west zone.

“It is my wish and prayer that such cordial and positive relationship will continue,” Tukur said.

He stated that Obasanjo’s experiences as one of the party`s founding fathers were required in its drive to get stronger and become more formidable.

Tukur said the PDP had more pressing challenges, bordering most importantly on the coming Ekiti and Osun states’ governorship elections and the 2015 general elections.

All this, he said, required strong inputs from the former president.

The PDP national chairman said continuous dialogue was needed for a stronger partnership among the party’s stakeholders.

He maintained that the need for PDP to reclaim lost grounds in the south-west required the full support of party leaders like Obasanjo.

Tukur expressed gratitude to Obasanjo for his manner of approach and for presenting his grievances on issues in the PDP south-west.

“I thank you for your gesture and I pray that we shall all continue to dialogue and partner, so he can move our party forward,” he said.

Baba also said there was the need for PDP to attain success in the governorship elections coming up in Ekiti and Osun and the subsequent elections in 2015.

This, according to him, was critical to reclaiming lost grounds in the South-West zone of the country.

On issues raised by Obasanjo in the letter on the state of PDP in the south-west, Tukur said the crisis within the PDP in the zone preceded his emergence as the party`s national chairman.

He insisted that the party’s National Executive Committee and the National Working Committee were never part of the problems in the south-west PDP.

“We came in when we were threatened with contempt of court charges for not obeying the court’s order to dissolve the south-west zonal executive and remove some officers of the party.

“We complied with the court orders because of our belief in the rule of law and to avoid consequences of disobeying such orders.’’ Tukur said.