Ogid, ex-PDP Vice-Chairman calls for restructuring, devolution of power, others

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Ogid, ex-PDP Vice-Chairman calls for restructuring, devolution of power, others

Former National Vice Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) South-South, Emmanuel Ogidi has urged the Federal Government to restructure the country by encouraging each geo-political zone to develop along its area of best comparative advantage age. Addressing journalists on the state of the nation in Delta state, Ogidi said that such restructuring would return the country to the winning formula of the past that facilitated it’s socio-economic

development.

In his words: “Growing up in secondary school, we are taught government and they taught us separation of powers in government. That time we thought that as we are going into presidential system of government, we are going to really talk about the checks and balance but unfortunately we threw away the checks and there is no balance and that’s where we found ourselves today”

“The executive is so powerful and the national assembly and the judiciary cannot handle that and until there is separation of powers, Nigeria will not be a great nation. Unfortunately, you know that one of our point agenda is restructuring. Restructuring is not about states but everything including the judiciary and the legislator. If they are not independent we cannot make any headway”

“One of my colleagues was of the opinion that we should go back to the parliamentary system but I said why he thinks presidential is expensive today is because we have forgotten about checks and balance, it’s not suppose to be expensive. It just that we allow people to be increasing their salaries that’s why we think it’s expensive. But under normal situations, presidential system of government, I did not see anything wrong with it”

“Until we do restructuring, there will be no hope for us. But Nigeria would have develop further than where we are today if we have allowed each of the regions to uptima in their growth. Today we keep dragging ourselves instead of allowing us to move and others can join.

On the crisis ravaging his party, the party chieftain said the PDP, being one big family, has the internal mechanism to deal with any dissatisfaction. Adding that the party will soon resolve its raging crisis and prevent exodus of some of its chieftains in order to win the 2023 elections. He noted that PDP members were more than ever determined to rescue Nigeria from her current predicament.

He said: “APC has no job anymore what we expect them to do is to be apologising to Nigerians today that they failed. But a bad workman would always look for other people’s problem. Yes, we have some issues in PDP but we have our own internal mechanism to resolve it. From January by God’s grace, PDP is entering another level. Look at Wike for example, all his candidates are PDP and he is working hard to deliver those candidates. Wike is a very smart politician, I won’t be surprised that Rivers is going to produced the highest vote in the whole of Nigeria for PDP for the presidency and he is going to taunt us. Wike is a smart guy.”

PDP Winning Delta state considering some of challenges in the state party?

“What cause this is the presidential ambition of some of our candidates and those ambition led us into problem. But as you know Delta state is a PDP state. No matter how you look at it, when you go to court and come back, it’s legal battle, there will be injury. There is no battle you go to that there will be no injury. Some of our generals are badly wounded today but there is healing process. As for winning Delta state, it’s a giving and why, this is the first time somebody from Delta state have been offered a vice presidential candidate by a current governor.We are looking at the big picture, we want to have home and national. We are going to do whatever it takes. Those generals that are injured, we start to give them healing pills, they can heal fast, and those who left us we are going to bring them back because it is a task to be done by all of us.

Big money windfall from Abuja to Delta state government went borrowing

Borrowing is not the issue but what you do with what you are borrowing that should concern us. What happens was this, the federal government did not give the money, they did not even have money to give. But the government said they will ‘pack your borrowing’, what that mean is that big the state is expecting 13 billion, you have an bank have an agreement with them on interest base. Some people rushed to court thinking the money was there but it wasn’t as we speak. Wike discounted from the bank and with the contractors.

“Don’t forget one thing because the way the country is structure, every state is independent. It’s only the Assembly that can impeach a government not from the Abuja. And by the constitution we are operating today, the state governors are so powerful that is why they can also challenge us in the party. I grow up old school, I was in NPN as young man, the chairman is almost powerful than the president but today, the governor is more powerful than the state and that has created all these problems.

Like I said earlier, Until we restructure, until the power is devolved, we keep on having this problems. if you remember, we are told that some workers are protesting on the road for their pensions, those are local government workers and they are not from the state.

Delta state used part of the state fund to fund the local government expenses because federal government named 774 are they managing 774? Yes , I know that in some states they have ambushed them but not so in Delta state.

2023 Election and myriad of INEC offices being destroyed, vote buying & youths being used by politicians for election violence

I don’t think youths are involved in burning of INEC offices but what I am not confidence today about the youths is that, I don’t know whether they did not see us as their mentors. If they have see us as one, they will not go to what they are doing today. However, the problems with the youths start from the parents. The first teacher of the youth is the parents, the second teacher is the school and church is the third teacher. All these three teachers failed the youths”

“Politicians did not fail the youths but these three teachers. I grew up under these three teachers and why am I not violent. These agents of socialisation failed the youths and not the politicians. In 1971, I was in class four and almost expelled by a teacher, he reported me to the principal, it was very though but I survived it. I was so bitter and I determined I was going to revenge. One night I was alone and I have a big stick with me that I am going to hit him that thing that we are thought at home and in church said “you can’t do that*. And I walked away.

That’s why I said if you have this background, it’s difficult for anything to influence you.