The National chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Bamanga Tukur has declared that leaders and members of the ruling party must be ready to imbibe the culture of discipline if the party must make any meaningful progress.
In a statement he personally signed on Tuesday, Mr Tukur stressed the need for the various stakeholders to respect the supremacy of the party, saying “the flock would only flounder without party supremacy”.
A culture of discipline, he added, would ensure the party’s victory in any election and would also give his tenure the much desired “sound projection and recognition”.
Mr Tukur added in stern terms; “so there must be control. Authority must flow from one direction, which is the party.
“From day one that I was elected as chairman, I have been committed to the vision and best wishes of the founding fathers, of which I am one. I did not come from any party to join the PDP.
“So I appeal to our members to give us the space and the support to do the job for which we are elected and that includes taking the right decisions for the party’s progress.
“The PDP constitution lays emphasis on party supremacy. The national secretariat would not shirk its responsibilities in taking appropriate decisions in the interest of all members.
“President Goodluck Jonathan, the PDP leader, acknowledges the powers conferred on the party by the constitution and has always been encouraging the dispensation of party supremacy for shaping the good conduct of PDP while strengthening democracy all the same”.
Mr Tukur appealed for confidence of the entire membership of the party nationwide, saying that they should stop doubting his ability to shepherd the PDP towards the right direction.
According to him, every decision he had taken so far concerning the party had proven to be time tested, and that he had been vindicated in not a few of such instances.
The highlight of Mr Tukur’s assignment for the day was a complaint tabled before him by the leadership of the Ekiti State chapter of the PDP about the arson and wanton destruction of party property allegedly by one of the party’s governorship aspirants in the state.
The Chairman of the Ekiti chapter, Makanju Ogundipe narrated the details of how the said aspirant stormed the party secretariat with armed thugs and forcefully taking over the secretariat.
On the orders of the unnamed aspirant, Mr Ogundipe said the hired thugs wounded and chased all members of the state executive away from the premises of the secretariat.
An Ekiti PDP chieftain in the entourage, M. Ademuwagun corroborated Mr Ogundipe’s tale of woe.
He urged the national chairman to take immediate steps to sanction the said aspirant, to serve as a lesson to others with similar inclination and to assert party supremacy.
Mr Ademuwagun wondered how someone seeking to hold the exalted office of governor of a state should resort to acts of thuggery and brigandage “in a civilised environment like ours” where dialogue, consultation and peaceful resolution of contentious issues are now the order of the day.