PDP inaugurates 154 -man national campaign council in desperate bid to oust Buhari from office

NIGERIA'S main opposition the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has inaugurated a 154-man campaign council to run its 2019 elections in a spirited attempt to wrestle power from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

In February next year, Nigeria will go to the polls, with the presidency, 30 state governorships, membership of both houses of the National Assembly and all 36 state houses of assembly up for grabs. Former vice president Alhaji Atiku Abubakar is the PDP's presidential candidate and yesterday, he held a meeting with party leaders to fine-tune his campaign plans.

According to the Independent National Electoral Commission (Inec) presidential and National Assembly elections will hold on February 16, 2019. With the bar on campaigns for the elections lifted on November 18, the PDP has wasted no time hitting the ground running as it desperately wants to grab power from the APC.

Alhaji Abubakar said he is convinced beyond any doubt that 2019 elections will be a victory walk for the PDP.  He added that going by the momentum the party had gathered through its transparent primaries and people working together, victory was awaiting the party, adding that he was surprised when the party leadership invited him and informed him of the details of the money realised during the primaries.

“I said that should we win and we must win the presidential election, we will have to enthrone the best fiscal responsibility this country has ever known or ever seen. This is simply because our party has given us that leadership.

 “I believe with the genuine support of all of you, particularly of governors and members of the National Assembly, of party leaders, of local levels and of course, party supporters, if we work together, I am convinced without any doubts that this election is for us to win. We have built up so much momentum after the Port Harcourt convention, it is now time for us to pick up the momentum again until we land in Aso Villa,” Alhaji Abubakar said.

Senate president Dr Bukola Saraki, said that through the party’s national convention in Port Harcourt, the PDP had demonstrated to the world that it was ready to regain power and it was time to work together to achieve that. Warning the APC not to right the polls, Senator Saraki stressed the need to make 2019 general elections credible, saying if elections were not free and credible, the country would be a fertile ground for crisis.

He added: "It is not easy in a third world country to defeat an incumbent government but it has been done before by everybody and we will do it again. I say so because the people are with us and when the people are with you, God is with you, so PDP by God’s grace will succeed."