Ahead of 2023 general elections, Benue state governor, Samuel Ortom, has urged the national leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to address the crisis bedeviling the party, particularly, the injustices meted out on the Rivers state governor, Nyesom Wike.
The governor who stated this on Monday, during an expanded state PDP caucus meeting at government house in Makurdi, said allowing the crisis to linger and shoving Wike or any member of the party aside, could be dangerous for the party come 2023.
Ortom stated that despite his suggestions on how the party can resolve the crisis, the leadership has failed to deploy its internal conflict management mechanism to solve the problems.
“The leadership of the party was not able to deploy its internal conflict resolution management skills in solving the problems that arose and then, it has continued. To me it is better for us to work together and deliver this party.
“So, I’m asking that this injustice that has been meted to my friend, Wike, be addressed because he stood for the party and been working for it.
“The leadership of the party should do the needful to resolve that problem because in election, one vote can make you lose and so we need everybody to win and not to shove people around as though they are not relevant. Everyone is relevant and one vote can make you fail election. So the leadership at the national level should do more.”
“If you dismiss us that you don’t need us, I think that will be dangerous. I want the party to address the injustices so that as we move into election, we will work together and we will have no crisis.”
Earlier, governor Ortom noted that the stakeholders meeting was to discuss the formation of the campaign council of the state.
While noting that the APC as been demarketed in Benue state, Ortom said the focus is to rescue the country from the All Progressive Congress, APC’s strangulation and urged all PDP member in the state to work hard to enable the party win.
He appealed to aggrieved members of the party in the state to sheathe their sword saying “PDP in Benue is united. All blackmail should cease in the state. Crisis not in Benue but at the national level.”