Press statement from the PDP signed by its chairman, Adamu
Mu'azu
Sixteen years ago, Nigerians gave our great
party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) the mandate to build, nurture and
deepen democracy after three decades of military rule in our country.
That historic mandate
was freely given in recognition of the courageous and patriotic role of the
founding fathers of our party whose resilience and doggedness championed the
return of democracy and the personal freedom we all enjoy today.
Within this period,
our party worked very hard in rebuilding and strengthening democratic
institutions, tenets and norms while lifting our status as the leading
democracy in Africa and one of the best in the world.
It is incontrovertible
that under the PDP-led government, our nation moved from a near pariah status
to a strong actor in the international democratic arena, a product of various
electoral reforms and our iron-cast commitment to transparent, free and fair
electoral process at all levels.
Even in the midst of
obvious threats to our democracy, the PDP and the government it sponsored
continued to stabilize the polity through strict adherence to rule of law and
liberalization of the political and economic space.
In the last 16 years
the PDP-led administration achieved significant milestones in our social and
economic lives. We moved Nigeria from a debtor nation to Africa’s largest
economy and one of the fastest growing in the world, a feat, which is
accompanied with unprecedented expansion of the private sector as well as
multi-sectorial infrastructural development, all, great legacies we achieved
for our nation.
Presently, our nation
is at the threshold of history and its defining moment for the future. As you
are aware, in the early hours of Wednesday, April 1, 2015, the Independent
National Electoral Commission (INEC) returned the candidate of the All
Progressives Congress (APC), Gen. Muhammadu Buhari as winner of the 2015
presidential election.
However, we have
received reports of serious irregularities that characterized the conduct of
the election and we shall channel our protests to the appropriate quarters in
line with our profound respect for the rule of law and democratic ethos.
Our party comes with
great values and tradition and we will adhere to them and ensure that nothing
is done to truncate our democracy, which we have proudly worked so hard to
nurture and sustain to maturity.
Therefore, if the
outcome of the election is truly the reflection of the wishes and aspirations
of our citizens, the PDP will most willingly respect that wish.
What is paramount to
us is the survival of our democracy, the unity, peace and progress of our dear
nation and the happiness of all our people. Nigeria is bigger than any
political party, individual or group and her overall interest must be our
priority at all times.
It is in this light
that we as a party commend our flag bearer, President Goodluck Jonathan for his
heroic act in conceding to the voice of the people, an action that stands him
out as a true democrat and a statesman.
We also congratulate
the APC flagbearer, Gen. Mohammadu Buhari for his resilience and victory in
this election while wishing him success in the onerous task of leading our
nation once again.
On the same note, we
wish to also commend the electorate for the peaceful manner with which they
conducted themselves in the course of this election.
For us in the PDP, we
want to state in very clear terms that we are not down. We are only at our
redefining moment. Rather than demoralize us, this election has afforded us
great lessons and we are now more than ever before reinvigorated for the race
ahead.
As we return to the
electorate for the April 11, 2015 governorship and state assembly elections, we
go recharged with faith in our heart. We assure all our candidates in the
remaining elections that the party will stand with you, campaign with you and
work vigourously to ensure your total victory at the polls.
Finally, we call on
our party faithful to remain steadfast in our renewed effort to deliver our
flag bearers in the remaining elections.
Signed:
Ahmadu, Adamu Mu’azu,
CON.
National Chairman
No comments:
Post a Comment