The Cross River State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has vowed to re-strategise ahead of the forthcoming local government elections.
The state chairman of the party, Mr. Venatius Ikem gave the hint at a stakeholders meeting held in Calabar, the capital of Cross River State, southern Nigeria.
Ikem, who lamented the failure of the PDP to clinch more than five legislative seats both at the 2023 state and national assembly elections, attributed the defeat to internal wranglings.
According to Ikem, “we went into an election with a divided house; and a divided house cannot stand. As a party, we have enjoyed unprecedented success and we took that for granted.
“This party remains strong at the grassroots. I take responsibility for the outcome of the last election and the way things turned out.
“We are going back to rejig our party. We are going to put things in place. I am not proud to be a chairman that lost elections in the state, but am proud that I come from a zone where we did a bit different,” he noted.
The party chairman urged all stakeholders to put the interest of the party before personal interest, pleading that those aggrieved should eschew bitterness for unity.
He expressed the conviction that with the acceptance and enthusiasm of the grassroots, the PDP would bounce back to victory at the local and 2027 general elections.
Ikem assured, “let us look beyond personal interests; there are challenges we need to over come. We need to reason with each other because there is still enthusiasm for the PDP and we will definitely bounce back.”
Remain steadfast
In a brief remark, the senator representing Cross River northern senatorial district, Senator Jarigbe Agom Jarigbe appreciated party stakeholders for what he described as ‘keeping faith with the party’ despite all odds.
Jarigbe emphasized the need for party faithful to remain steadfast and take advantage of the period and work towards the next elections in the state.
The senator said, “I appreciate the enthusiasm of members of the party. I encourage all of us, the only constant thing in life is change.
“The All Progressives Congress (APC) took over power due to the mistakes we made. I do not think that the APC is infallible. The APC will definitely make mistakes and pave the way for us to take over.,” Jarigbe stated.
Similarly, the PDP gubernatorial candidate in the 2023 election, Professor Sandy Onor urged party members not to be deterred due to the loses suffered during the election.
Senator Onor assured party members and supporters of the determination to rejig the party to win the next general election in Cross River State.
He stressed the importance of unity to achieve greatness and take over Cross River State.
Emmanuel Ukoh
