By Olanrewaju Adesanya
The new Lagos State Chairman of People’s Democratic Party, Engr Adedeji Doherty, has said the party is poised to change the narrative of governance and development come 2023, by ensuring the All Progressives Congress (APC) loses grip of power in the state.
Doherty, made this disclosure while delivering his inaugural address in Lagos yesterday,stating that the new leadership of the party would usher in a new lease of life for the party and Lagos in particular.
He appreciated the role played by the national leadership of the party for the restoration of unity in the party.
According to Doherty,our democratic journey in Lagos over the past 20years has been a tedious one, which has been marred with one problem or other and has led us to failures at every council, gubernatorial and presidential elections in the past”.
Doherty explained further that the failure of the party to win Lagos since 1999 created a serious concern for the National Chairman of the party, Prince Uche Secondus, who in his own wisdom decided to create a fact finding committee headed by Senator Ben Obi to look for a long lasting solution to the division and crises in the party,which led to his emergence.
” This committee met with all our leaders and stakeholders and finally came up with recommendations to the NWC for onward action and implementation at the state level. The recommendation was simple, that is , that all vacancies at every level of the Lagos state structure must be filled according to the constitution and not by nomination, imposition or the use of any sharing formula”, said Doherty.
” It was this bold step taken by the Prince Uche Secondus led NWC that has finally given birth to the new dawn in our party today. Having said this, I would like to thank the major actors in this process who ensured that this decision by the NWC became a reality”, said Doherty.
He explained that the PDP Transformation train has taken off, asking members of the party who had left to come back without meeting any condition.
He outlined the seven point agenda through which his leadership would rebuild the party in the state, saying ” I plead with our aggrieved members who are in various cases in court to give peace a chance. The 65% 35% sharing formula used in the past hereby comes to an end, PDP Lagos state will start afresh, we are one family and the party remains supreme.
Commenting on the state of the nation and Lagos, the Lagos PDP Chairman stated that the country’s democracy was at a critical situation, stating further that public primary and tertiary institutions in Lagos are dilapidating due to poor funding and bad management.
“Our roads are death traps due to lack of funds and mismanagement of resources. Our financial situation is in critical stage where Lagos state is in a phenomenal debt situation of over N2trillion and still raising. Our general hospitals and primary health care units are under staffed, under equipped and not affordable to the common man. Our transportation system over the years has been way behind in functionality due to bad management, low funding in fact it is becoming an eyesore and this is due to misplaced priorities”, said Doherty.
“The uncompleted projects liter the state like no one cares, this is not acceptable, other areas are the various dump sites that causes health epidemics in various communities, the Eko Atlantic Project is gradually becoming another white elephant. These projects show clearly that the APC led government had their priorities misplaced from unset. These vital signs show glaringly that corruption is the order of the day in Lagos. The new administration will address these lapses as we go along”
Earlier, the National Vice Chairman (Southwest PDP), Dr Eddy Olafeso, commended the leaders and elders of the Lagos PDP for their doggedness for the survival and peace of the party, saying ” I commend all of you who participated in the process of peace that we have today”.
Olafeso added ” I am forever grateful for leaders like Chief Bode George and leaders of his generation and the foundation they had laid. We are happy to build on it.
The Southwest is at a crossroads but this is a time for a new beginning indeed and with peace in Lagos state, is the beginning of new things in the southwest. The challenges in the country today is enormous, there is need for all of us to be united and I appeal with all of you to join hands with Doherty to take the party to new height”, said Olafeso.
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