Governors Have Not Become ‘godfathers’ Over PDP NWC Members – Osita Chidoka

Former Aviation Minister, Osita Chidoka has submitted that the governors and the National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have different roles to play in ensuring the success of the party.

The PDP chieftain spoke against the background of the roles played by governors elected on the platform of the party in resolving the recent crisis which threatened to derail the party.

Naija News recalls the governors played critical roles in planning and executing the PDP October 30 and 31 National Convention which has now produced a new set of NWC members to drive the affairs of the party.

However, Chidoka has now moved to allay fears that the governors will be the ones controlling the party structure and the NWC members will become their ‘boys’.

Speaking on Monday, as a guest on Sunrise Daily, a Channels TV programme, Chidoka said while truly the governors played key roles in stabilizing the party and resolving the crisis, the new NWC members will be given the free hand to drive party affairs.

He added that the governors remain leaders and stakeholders in their own rights but won’t interfere or drag party management with the new NWC members but would rather work together as partners in progress.

He said: “The governors are members of the party and its highest elected leaders. The burden of managing the controversy that normally comes with human interaction, of managing the tension in the party falls on the PDP governors.

“There is no better group of people to go to than the governors when looking at the mechanism of democracy such as consensus, zoning, and others.

“Will the governors control the party post-election? That is where the issue comes in. The immediate answer would be a no. That will not work because the governors, some of them are second term governors, some are looking for nomination into the senate, to run for president or whatever, some are seeking reelection.

“And the NWC will make sure there is a level playing field for everybody contesting against governors.

“So, as much as the governors are critical in managing the tension in PDP, the national working committee now represents all shades of opinions in the PDP.

“That means a certain balancing act has to continue to happen to keep all interest groups accommodated in the party.”