Ex-president Goodluck Jonathan said he is willing to make himself available to reposition the PDP ahead of the 2019 elections
- He said the electoral value of the PDP has not diminished just because it lost power to the APC in 2015
- He called on the President Buhari-led administration to strengthen national institutions
Former president Goodluck Jonathan said the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will work hard to get back power in 2019.
He said he was willing to make himself available for contributions towards rebuilding and repositioning the party ahead of the 2019 general elections, The Nation reports.
Jonathan described the loss of the 2015 general election as a temporary setback for the PDP
The former president stated this on Monday, February 13, in Abuja while receiving a delegation of PDP chieftains at his private residence.
According to him, losing of power at the centre to the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2015 general election has not diminished the electoral value of the opposition party.
The former president also said he is happy the PDP is working towards regaining power in 2019.
He said: "Yes we lost the presidential election but that doesn’t diminish us. Every other party still knows that PDP is a leading party.
“Losing the presidency is something temporary. We should be able to get that position back as long as we are able to get our acts together.
“I am happy that you people are working towards that."
Jonathan said the idea of direct primaries to elect the party’s candidates for general elections, as enunciated by the party chieftains was a welcome one.
However, he noted that there were serious challenges associated with direct primaries, especially with the number of voters involved.
Rather, Jonathan proposed enlarged and broad-based delegate system from the ward level.
He stressed the need for the present administration led by President Muhammadu Buhari to strengthen national institutions, while citing the case of the United States, where President Donald Trump’s travel ban on Muslims was upturned by the courts.
The former president said the nation can only grow when the institutions are strengthened
“No nation can grow with weakened institutions,” he noted.
Jonathan added that existing political parties also required reforms to strengthen their structures.
