Bode George, former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has firmly stated that he will never leave the party for another, despite its current challenges.
In an interview with journalists on Sunday in Lagos, George responded to the ongoing leadership crisis within the party and the departure of some long-standing members due to internal disputes.
He expressed confidence that the party’s issues would be resolved and that PDP would emerge stronger. George reiterated his belief in the party’s ideology, asserting that no other political party in Nigeria upheld the same principles or practiced internal democracy as strongly as the PDP.
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“I can’t leave the PDP. I can’t. Look, every other party is just a congregation of strange bedfellows. They don’t have the principles we have in our party. Why would I leave reality for fantasy? I believe so much in the principles of the PDP,” George stated.
He added that those leaving the PDP over its internal challenges were never truly committed to the party in the first place.
When asked whether the party missed defected chieftains like Peter Obi and Rabiu Kwankwaso, presidential candidates of the Labour Party (LP) and the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) respectively, George said the party did not miss them. Instead, he pointed out that what was missing were the selflessness, dedication, and progressive politics of the party’s founding fathers.
George further reflected on the party’s past, citing the case of the late Chief Alex Ekwueme, a founding member of the PDP, who failed to secure the party’s presidential ticket twice. He highlighted that the PDP was never built around individuals but rather around a collective vision.
He also spoke about the importance of unity and legacy-building within the party, drawing attention to the exemplary conduct of Ekwueme. “He contested with President Obasanjo and graciously accepted his defeat. Ekwueme was a model of selflessness and party unity, never once attempting to demonise or destroy the party,” George said.
He concluded by emphasising the importance of consensus-building, dialogue, and discipline for the PDP’s future stability.
