Shehu Musa Gabam, national secretary of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) says the party is keen on upstaging the All progressives Congress (APC) and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) before the 2019 elections.
The one-time deputy director-general of the Atiku Presidential Campaign Organisation said the country needs to be rescued from the two parties.
“The APC has messed up the process, shown lack of competence and knowledge of Nigeria. It has shown elements of nepotism and ineptitude in managing the affairs of Nigeria”, he told Daily Trust.
“The PDP has continued to behave with arrogance and disrespect to its own dos and don’ts, and some of us who founded the PDP on the basis of conviction and consolidation to the Nigerian nation believe that the country needs to be rescued.
“We believe that we can put our hands together and bring a platform that can rescue Nigeria. We didn’t go into the APC. Assuming we were looking for power or money, we would have gone into the APC.
“We want to rescue the system once again. So we are a platform that is credible and well known. The SDP is a household name in virtually every community to champion the course of democracy and rescue people who are stranded in the PDP and the APC. That is the fundamental reason all of us came together.
Reminded that he once worked for former head of state, General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (IBB) and if it was an indication of the latter’s involvement in SDP, Gabam replied: “What you need to know is that after the convention, we have been consulting, meeting different leaders, including IBB and Olusegun Obasanjo.
“Even before Obasanjo’s letter to President Buhari and that of IBB, we had gone far with our consultations. Virtually all leaders were consulted to say we need a new platform.
“(Ex-President) Jonathan was consulted. He was aware of what was going on because so many people from him were part of the consultation team that went round.
“So in terms of whether IBB is part of us or not; it is neither here nor there. He is not an active politician now, but he is a father figure. He can advise both parties. But the good thing is that he knows where we are and we have his blessings and the blessings of all other senior Nigerian citizens.
“The fact of the matter is that it is not a personal thing; it is a national thing, so we are not doing it for our own personal interest. It is in the interest of every citizen of Nigeria. So that is what it is.
“For us, we will feel happy that all of them are part and parcel of this fight again. They added a lot of value to the PDP, and again, if they have anything to contribute to the new development, we will be happy.”
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