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Moshood Salvador, chairman of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Lagos State and a former member of the House of Representatives, in this exclusive interview with INIOBONG IWOK, assess the state of the party and its chances of winning the state in the 2019 general election, among other issues. Excerpts:
How would you describe the recently concluded Southwest rally of the PDP?
The recently concluded Southwest PDP rally was a huge success, because we realise that large crowd of party members came from different parts of Osun and other south west states, and it was also attended by other structures of the party. We also saw all the party leaders, Secondus, Makarfi, Sule Lamido all presidential aspirants of the party, and they were all looking elated, warmly greeting and exchanging pleasantries among themselves; it means there would not be problem after the party’s presidential primary.
What is the state of the PDP in Lagos State now?
The party is doing well; and we are following the constitution of the party to guide us in whatever we do; we would not do anything outside of the constitution of the party, in our dealing with the people that is what I said.
Immediately I was elected as the chairman of the party in Lagos, I realised that you cannot have just about 30,000 members in the state; you need more than that to guard the pooling units and I said we have to raise our membership strength, especially in a general election. And I immediately set out and embarked on membership drive and mobilised members across the state; I opened a site www.PDP.com and people are registering and we are attending to them; I can say we have more than 3000, 000 members of PDP in Lagos state now; but that is not up to my target; my target is to have more than a million members in Lagos State; that is why you saw the large crowd at our state rally last time, even our secretariat could not accommodate us again for our rally because our number has increased.
Some people still think PDP is dead in Lagos?
PDP is not dead in Lagos State, we are more alive than APC; tell me, when did APC hold ward, state meetings? The chairman just stays at home and they are not doing anything; it is only PDP that is working; APC is not doing anything.
In the 2015 general election, the PDP won several positions in Amuwo Odofin constituency; are you confident of retaining them now?
We still have our two House of Representatives members in the party; the two assembly members in Oshodi that defected to the APC would not be given ticket to return to the House by the APC. I have that information; so it would not affect us much but you cannot sit down and say that, you have to keep on working.
They defected because they were not properly managed; if they were properly managed they would not have left. The House of Assembly member in Amuwo-Odofin that defected to the APC is now struggling to come back to the party and I said you can come back if you follow the right procedure, because the constitution of our party says you can come back, but you have to start as a beginner; but there is power in CWC to give a waiver for him to remain a leader, but you have to be able to deal with the issues and we are doing that.
There were echoes of endorsement of elected political office holders of the party for second term in the last state rally; is this the position of the party?
Did you hear that from me? I never said any member holding public office has been given automatic return ticket. I can’t make such pronouncement; it must have been made from other people and these are people creating problems for the party, but I can assure you that we are doing everything possible for the party to get peace.
Is there a problem between you and Bode George and some of his loyalists; they were holding programme somewhere else during your last state rally?
They were holding a meeting in Bode George’s house and they said they would join us when they finish, I don’t know what they were also doing there again.
We don’t have problem here in PDP; if you say some officers don’t come to meeting we have CWC, we meet regularly and it was three that use to be absent, but now they are four; our own is to send notice of meeting if you don’t come that is your own, we don’t have problem with any of them, they may have their issues. Imagine, one of them said he was given a small office and I told him go and use my office. The office was allocated by the organising secretary with my approval, the party is moving forward, we don’t operate like before, things have changed.
One of your chieftains, Segun Adewale, is contesting in Ekiti as a governorship candidate of ADP; would your party take disciplinary action against him?
How can you call him our party member; when you see him contest in Ekiti State on another party? However, if he comes back to the party, we would accept him, it is his constitutional right; and you can dump your party and go elsewhere to actualise your ambition, even the Nigerian constitution guarantees that.
The issue of defection among Nigerian politicians has become worrisome; does it bother you?
You have to take as part of politics because an average Nigerian politician has lost integrity; lying has now become fun. Our integrity has gone completely. Elders lying and when you leave they said I had to do it to hide my face. Presently, you see pastors; Imans lying; so it is deep-rooted.
Are you concerned about the kind of individuals holding elective positions nowadays?
The calibre of people going into politics in the country; do you want to blame them? It is because decent people are not going into politics; even you would not vote for them; you would say they don’t have money. How do you expect a businessman to invest his money in your future and not expect anything in-return?
Even in advanced countries, whose democracy we are copying; it is not because you are rich that you go into politics, it is only in Nigeria that such occurs.
It is only when Nigeria changes that culture that they should expect good leadership in the country. You eat your cake and you still want it back. The orientation has to change if we want to move forward in this country.
How would you assess the Buhari administration?
Buhari is a failure; he is a complete failure; every right-thinking person would not be happy with the death of human beings in the country; I see many things that baffle me, that make me so sad and I wonder where we are going in this country? I travelled to Osogbo last weekend; and I saw houses without doors, they use palm fronds for their roofs and there is no police stations; that means; anyone can just come and take people’s lives without anyone noticing or knowing what is happening.
But the President said he wants to seek re-election?
It is not Buhari that is seeking re-election it is the cabal; Buhari’s name is just being used. The way he is doing, how many documents can he sign? He is an old man; they are only using his name like they used it the last time. Why would they persuade him to contest, if not that the cabals are benefiting from him? The president said he was not corrupt and the vice president said he was even giving his salary to the less-privileged; then where are they putting Nigerian money? We are not seeing new universities, roads, hospitals, etc, they are selling oil every day and we are paying tax. Even in Lagos Ambode is over-taxing the people; businesses are closing down and relocating to other neighbouring countries; even Michelins had to leave for Ghana because of the difficult environment for doing business here. You can see what happened in Ekiti, they cannot even conduct a common primary.
We have not seen anybody come out to declare intention for governorship of Lagos State?
It is too early; all these people just coming out now are comedians; the real people would come out six or seven months to election. Look at the people just coming from abroad and giving people $10, 000 thinking Nigerians are poor and they want to get the ticket; but what I am saying here in Lagos is that they should join the party and build the party with us; it is when you do that you can know how we operate.
What’s your impression about the Ambode administration?
Akinwunmi Abode is a failure in Lagos State, look at what he is doing; taking money to develop Epe, an area that has no value to the state, just because they said he was from their ward. He said he built 144 local roads, but those roads were built by the local government areas and the state is claiming them; It seems they have forgotten the LGA is a different tier of government.
