The Chairman of the Lagos State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Philip Aivoji, has come out to say God is fighting for the party’s presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, therefore the position of the five aggrieved PDP governors is immaterial.
According to him, he doesn’t think the party should be worried about the aggrieved governors, popularly call the G5 led by the Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike, because the PDP know who it’s talking to and how to work things out.
Naija News reports that Aivoji told Punch that the G5 governors are free to support whoever they want to support because the PDP is focused on winning.
He said “I don’t think we should be worried. We don’t have any problems at all. We are focused, we know the people we are talking to, and we know how to work it out and address it. We don’t want anybody to come and win the election for us in Lagos State. We are the ones taking destiny into our hands, and we’ll work to win. So, whatever the five governors say is immaterial.
“They are free to support whomever they want. So, we are not bothered at all. I don’t think that we should even bother ourselves talking about it because the person who invited them said openly that he’s disappointed, disgraced, and humiliated. So, what do we have to say again when God is already fighting for Atiku? We are for Atiku, we are for Jandor, and we are winning Lagos State.”
The Lagos PDP chairman submitted that “As far as I’m concerned, all five governors are just opportunists who are not grounded in politics. They all began in politics in 1998 and no politician of note since the UPN days would make such a suicidal move. Nobody dares the party and goes scot-free.
“For me, I’m not bothered. Posterity will judge everyone. I’m at the party not because of anything or whatever. I want to deliver a state for the PDP. That is my interest and focus.”
He furthered stated that the voice of the people is the voice of God, which is why PDP members in the state and elsewhere have shown displeasure at the decision of the G5 and how much they have cost the party.
Naija News also gathered that Aivoji observed that Atiku and the PDP governorship for Lagos state, Dr Olajide Adediran aka Jandor, are popular in Lagos, and they can win the election in the state because PDP members are in support of them.
He said anyone in the party that is not in support of the two candidates is on his own.
“No one forced anyone to join the party. We all joined of our own volition. There’s a constitution that binds everyone together, and we must be people of honour and integrity. What amazed me is that the leader who invited them, who had been preaching integrity, turned out to be the other way around. We respect him; he’s an elder, he has served before, and he’s a retired general.
“But what I see is that most of them lack ethics and discipline. Every profession has its own set of dos and don’ts. Once you cross the red line, you know you are on your own. So, if the party isn’t saying anything now, that doesn’t mean it doesn’t know what to do. Let’s just be focused and win the election,” the Lagos PDP chairman added.
Speaking about how Atiku handled the crisis with the G5 governors, he said “Well, I’ll only say what I know. I’m not a member of the national body, nor am I the national chairman. I’m not a member of the national working committee, so I wouldn’t know how he handles it. What I know is that the five governors have gone too far.
“They are all leaders and mature people who have followers and would want to mentor people to be like them and contribute their quota to society. The way they are handling things shows they are not setting a good example, especially Governor Wike and the other man from Benue. Benue’s governor has disappointed me because I believed he was “a child of God.”
Giving his take about how some PDP members expressed dissatisfaction on how the former PDP deputy national, Olabode George met with the aggrieved governors in Lagos, the incumbent chairman said its an indication that party members are people of honour and integrity and they know where they are going.
Naija News learnt that Aivoji stated that “If any leader wants to derail, you tell the leader, ‘Sir, you are wrong.’ That was the training we had in politics. Anyone I work with, no matter how high up he is, will have to be able to hear me tell him when he’s wrong if he wants me to. Some of us are forthright politicians who are not sycophants, which is why you rarely see me speak. We are standing with Atiku Abubakar, and we know he’s going to win. That is why we are not changing our minds.”
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