Alex Akinnadeju, former legislator and member, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Reconciliation Committee in Ondo State, speaks with Senior Correspondent, JULIUS ALABI, in Akure, on efforts of his group in addressing grievances among party chieftains in the state.
Reconciling aggrieved Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) members in Ondo
Yes, we have reconciled the reconcilable. A man cannot get 100 per cent, but I know that the committee has done a lot to sustain the present tempo in the party. Without that committee, Ondo would have been on fire by now. And I know that by the grace of God, all those who are still aggrieved will soon come to us.
Those yet to be reached
The battle continues; we are working. There is no price too much for peace. Peace has no price; it is too expensive. Whosoever that wants to rebel against his own party will gain nothing. And one per cent success can take us somewhere. The job of the reconciliation committee is strenuous and has to continue. We are appealing to the people; many of them are justified, and my own is to appeal to them. A very good warrior fights and draws the battle line and is able to fight again. If you go to any war head-long, you are finished. You must be very tactical.
PDP going to the polls in crisis
The PDP has no crisis that is greater than that of other parties in the state. Our problem is a family affair. We have the mechanism, which is quite different from other parties, to settle. Once a house is very big, there is bound to be problem, but there is a meeting point. So, PDP problem is not above solution.
Ondo APC reaping from PDP crisis
APC is making nothing out of the crisis. The problem in PDP has already been publicised, and it has made the party a hero. But at the end of the day, a winner will emerge. PDP will win anytime any day because they (members) are very large. The reconciliation committee has done a lot; if not so, there will be no PDP by now. Members have tried their best; for instance, look at the campaign going on now in Ondo South Senatorial District. Those you see there, campaigning for PDP, are not friends; but the name, PDP, brought them together.
Some aggrieved members still in the lurch
I said we are still working very hard to reach them; all of us will be on board. It is not a matter of misunderstanding; it is not a matter of communication gap. A mistake was made and the mistake is being corrected. Once you know that there is a mistake, there is a solution. We know the problem, and we have gone to the root of the problem. It is a family problem.
The problem within the PDP is very straightforward. Some people are saying that a tenant cannot drive them out of their house. Yes, your house is yours; any tenant who wants to drive you out of your house has to break his neck. At the same time, you still have to take the tenant once that is solved. That is the problem in Ondo PDP. It is not the party. The problem is not based on the party; human beings are the problem.
Every one of us will meet at a point, and that point is the party – the party is supreme. Who does not know that the party is supreme is not a politician and is not saying the truth. They can fight outside. People will see them, but there is a place of meeting, and the place of that meeting is the party. And when it gets to that place, the question of individual is set aside. They will first of all vote for the party, as nobody wants the party to go under. The fight is of survival and not why they are in PDP.
Don’t let us deceive ourselves; each of them has a point, particularly the old PDP. They have a point and we have told them: “Okay, this is your point; you are right. But what happens to your party? The house you have built, you are seeing somebody destroying it, what would you do?’
Candidates on new PDP list submitted to INEC for the election
Our committee has reconciled everything, leaving the one in the court to be decided. They only disagree on the list and not on PDP as a party. In the case they filed in the court, they did not say they are not of PDP. We have been able to tell them that PDP is their party. The party is very strong. None of them said they are not of PDP. The ones that cannot stay have gone away. That is all. The party still remains united. It is the party that is supreme. PDP will win by the grace of God.
We are fully prepared – you will see the result. I have never failed before. We are working and when it comes to the PDP, we set aside our quarrel and talk about the party. The party is very different. Everybody has agreed to go back to the party to work for it in the election.
