By Peter OSSAI, Abuja

Unfolds Vision For Repositioning The Party
More Groups declare Support, As Borno PDP Disowns State Party Chair
He Is The Best Thing To Happen To the party – Lamido

Newly inaugurated
chairman of the Peoples
Democratic Party, PDP,
Senator Ali Modu Sheriff,
has unfold his vision for the
turnaround of the fortunes of
the party with a promise to
address those issues that caused
the party’s defeat in the last
elections.
A statement by the new
PDP helmsman, said that he
was taking over at a very trying and challenging period in the
party’s life, and is conscious of
the very high expectations from
his leadership, but promised to
make the PDP work again.
“There is no doubt that fate
has thrust upon us the mantle
of leadership of our great party,
the Peoples Democratic Party,
PDP, at its most trying and challenging period. Having been undeservingly pushed into the position of an opposition from the ruling party in Nigeria, the task ahead is certainly not an easy one. We are aware that, there are very high expectations from fellow Nigerians on us, and other stakeholders to reposition the PDP, and give it a new focus”, Sheriff stated.
According to him, “the PDP is one party that has an avalanche of highly qualified individuals who could bail her out of the present quagmire, and I accepted the responsibility to lead at this time, not because I am the best, but because I have been identified as being capable of providing the road map for the party’s political rebirth.”
Meanwhile, the new National Chairman of the PDP, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff, had at the weekend unfolded the four cardinal policies that will inform his stewardship, which he tagged the “Four (4) R Agenda.
Senator Sheriff whose choice last week, excited many Nigerians, especially as he said he has come with an open mind for any form of partnership from fellow party men and women, further stated that “for a start, we wish to anchor our policies and programmes based on the principles of the four “Rs”, Rebuilding, Refocusing, Re-engineering and Repositioning”.
“We have a very strong commitment to this new vision, because we believe that, the immediate past elections, in which we performed dismally, was not a true reflection of the feelings of Nigerians towards the PDP. Rather, there was a general apathy on the side of our supporters, who decided to either remain passive, or uncooperative to our quest. Against this background, we are convinced that our party has all it takes to re-bounce back to power in 2019 by the grace of God Almighty, and the support of fellow Nigerians”, he added.
Senator Sheriff, fondly called SAS, told party followers while taking over the leadership of the party that, the PDP has no doubt experienced a lot of internal crisis occasioned by unnecessary power tussle amongst key stakeholders and the followership, the party has been betrayed by those entrusted with her management. This has led to a lot desertions by members.
“Coupled with the aggressive onslaught against us by other political parties”, he noted, “The PDP was almost decimated. The immediate task before us is therefore, rebuilding the fractured institutions of the party. This is possible only if we rekindle the confidence of our aggrieved compatriots, who for one reason, or the other have deserted the PDP or are contemplating doing so”.
While promising to map out a programme intended to pacify all aggrieved party members, the new Chairman also pledged to rebuild their confidence and make them play more active roles in the affairs of the PDP, stressing that, “we have already commenced rebuilding that bridge of unity, and we have been getting positive responses”.
Senator Sheriff’s statement further stated that, “The founding fathers of this great party, which prides itself as the biggest in Africa, south of the Sahara, was to enshrine a culture which allows citizens to determine the courses of their own destiny through democratic processes. Along the line, we seem to have derailed, which calls for immediate refocusing. We have come in to build upon that noble dream of our founding fathers by giving a new focus to the party”.
He observed that the state of PDP today is such that the morale of both the leadership and the followers has been seriously shaken following her loss of the Presidency, but it should not be forgotten that the party still has many state governors, senators, members of the House of Representatives and members of the Houses of Assembly still in her kitty.
He charged members not to bury themselves in lamentations, rather they should review events before, during and after the last elections, so that they can identify where they might have gone wrong. “I can see light at the end of the tunnel, only if we can re-engineer our collective energies for a better PDP. I am aware that already there is a report of what may have gone wrong. We shall study that report and see which of the recommendations are relevant to our current needs and situation”, he said.
Sheriff concluded by saying, “We offer ourselves today as servants of the people and the party, and no sacrifice shall be too much from us, so that we reach the Promised Land. We have set out before you a resume of our mission, and we hope to be judged by what we have promised to achieve”.
In the meantime, former Jigawa state Governor, Alhaji Sule Lamido has lambasted critics of the new PDP Chairman, saying they are afraid of senator Ali Modu Sheriff’s political profile, knowing that he is capable of turning around the fortunes of the PDP.
Lamido told the Voice of America in an interview that Senator Sheriff is the best thing to happen to the PDP under the present circumstances and all lovers of the party owe him maximum support, so that the PDP could be revived.
On the period Sheriff spent in the PDP to warrant his emergence as its National Chairman, the strongman of Jigawa politics said, it is the prerogative of the party’s stakeholders to pick anybody of their choice, as other parties had gone for people who spent far less time in those parties as leaders.
In A dramatic twist of fate, State Chairman of the PDP in Borno State, Alhaji Babab Basharu has been disowned by other members of the state EXCo and all 27 Local Govwernment Chairman of the aparty. The Executive members and Peoples Democratic Party, PDP chairmen in 27 local government councils of Borno state has back the appointment of former Borno state governor, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff as National Chairman of the party, stressing that, this is a right move in the right direction for PDP as according to them, Sheriff with his experience and capability in turning around political fortunes of the PDP.
Speaking at a press briefing on Sunday in Maiduguri the Borno state capital, state secretary of the party, Usman Mahdi Badari said that the recent noise from the opposition following the appointment of Senator Ali Sheriff shows that, they are afraid of him (Sheriff) knowing his political capabilities.
He said, APC has revealed their fears when they go about addressing press conferences to smear Sheriff’s image. “They have been doing so, accusing him of all sort of crimes but none of them could proof any wrong they allegedly said he committed. From the briefing of the Kano state governor one can deduce clearly the fears of APC knowing that with Senator Ali Modu Sheriff in position to direct PDP come 2019 APC’s chances are very slim in all elections.”
Speaking on the position of some PDP stakeholders, who appear also to be uneasy following the appointment of Sheriff, the state secretary said, they have been the Clog in the wheel of progress for the party since 1999 and they know very well that Sheriff is not going to work with such people, a situation which also expose their fears.