Ahead of ward congresses of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to elect new executives of the party at that level, the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege has called on party leaders to elect those domiciled in the units.
This comes as he warned against treating new defectors into the party as second-class citizens.
Speaking when he hosted leaders of the party from Delta North Senatorial District in his Asaba residence on Friday, Senator Omo-Agege stressed that a proper structure emplaced at the ward level would be used to win the next general election in 2023.
He tasked leaders of the party on the need for unity.
According to him, party structure at the ward level of every political party determines its successes or otherwise at elections.
“I am more interested in the leadership at the ward level because that is where we are going to be having the engine room to drive whatever we want to do.
“What we want to do is go to the ward level. And that is where we have the units. My idea is to take the party to the grassroots. And we cannot have only one leader at the ward. We have a lot of leaders at the ward level who can help us in this exercise. I would want us to invite those leaders. I don’t want any leader per ward to draw up a list of any exco. We want about 10 of our leaders per ward to sit down and allocate these slots to the various units comprising that ward.
“After you have allocated one exco slot per unit, ensure that whoever is going to occupy that slot in that unit resides in that unit. Please, do not allow or bring any list that will comprise somebody who lives here in Asaba and he wants to become a ward Chairman or Secretary in Igbuzor. And I want us to insist on this. There is a rationale for this: to help us mobilise for the general election. Because if we have an exco member who resides in that unit, what it means in effect is that we already have one person in that unit. And it is very difficult for you to rig an election where there is someone standing for you in that unit. That one person is going to assist us to put together the unit exco,” he stated.
He commended leaders of the party in Ndokwa nation for their sacrifices which, he said, have witnessed mass defection of PDP members to APC in the area. He urged them to continue with the drive to enlist more people into the party.
He added: “We don’t have joiners and founders in this party. Everybody has equal stake, entitlement and responsibility. We should celebrate the entrance of new members into the party and not treat them like second-class citizens. There is a lot that will go round when we prevail”.
The event which was graced by the Senator representing Delta North Senatorial District, Senator Peter Nwaoboshi; Chairman, Caretaker Committee, APC in Delta State, Prophet Jones Erue; Chairman, APC in Delta North Senatorial District, Prince Fred Mordi; former member of House of Representatives, Hon. Doris Udoh; elder statesman, Chief Hyacinth Enuha; former Commissioner of Housing in Delta State, Chief Paulinus Akpeki; Political Adviser to the Deputy President of the Senate, Chief Omene Sobotie; Chief of Staff to the Deputy President of the Senate, Dr. Otive Igbuzor; his deputy, Alex Onwudiamu Esq among others.
In his remarks, Senator Nwaoboshi explained why he dumped the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
This, he attributed, to historical antecedents of his people.
He noted that since the First Republic till date, political leaders from the area play their politicking at the centre and not as opposition.
He said: “As a student of history, I have taken pains to study the history of our people from 1960 to now and I have found out that an Anioma man has always been in the centre”.
