Senate President, Bukola Saraki has been appointed the national leader of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP at the party’s NEC meeting on Thursday.
Being the highest office holder in the party at the moment, Saraki will replace his deputy, Senator Ike Ekwerenmadu, who held the position until his defection as well as other top APC members to the PDP.
The Nigerian Tribune reports that supporters of the Senate President are currently staging a rally around major roads of Ilorin metropolis, Kwara state, to hail his defection from the APC to the PDP.
The jubilant crowd, who carried placards with inscribed messages to support the Senate President, said that Saraki would always win any election in the state irrespective of the political platform he chose to use.
Speaking with journalists at the entrance gate of the Government House, Ilorin, where the rally terminated, spokesperson for the youth, Yaqub Kannike, said that, “In Kwara, Saraki is our political party and we shall always vote for his party and candidates.
“He (Saraki) has been tested and trusted by the good people of Kwara state. In fact, he does not need to be in any political party to win elections in the state. The people of the state have said it in many fora that our political party in Kwara is “Saraki.”
“The simple interpretation of the above is that the people of the state are always ready to vote for any party that our leader belongs to, at any point in time. There are so many instances to buttress this assertion.
“The 2015 election is still very fresh in our memory. Since 2003 when he was elected the governor of the state, Saraki had been providing purposeful leadership for the people of Kwara state.”
The people challenged Saraki’s opponents on the need to show more commitments to the well-being of people of the state, saying they should not always attempt to impress voters during the election period.
“If we may ask, where are the political opponents of the Senate President when he was and still attending to the needs of the good people of Kwara state? Those antagonising Saraki to selfish interest are all seasonal and absentee politicians with no record of assisting their communities not to talk of the entire state.
“They always come around few months to election period to get patronage from their sponsors and attempt to deceive the electorate. But thank God, the Kwara electorate are very wise and had always rejected them whenever they came around.
“We are therefore using this forum to sensitise the people of the state to the antics of opposition elements and political spent forces who are jittery over Saraki’s defection to the PDP.
“They do not have anything to offer you as they will soon desert you as soon as they lose the 2019 general elections. Saraki is our God chosen leader who is always around to share in our happiness and grief. He deserves our support and we shall never cease supporting him,” he said.
Receiving the crowd, Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed assured that his administration would, within the time frame left, increase support for government business by delivering democratic dividends to the people in infrastructure, health and economy.
“I want to assure you, like I have always said, your voice is our voice. On our part, we will continue within the time frame left, to increase our support for government business by delivering democratic dividends to the people in infrastructure, health and economy.
“We will also ensure that we have a very comfortable and convenient political environment so that the aspirations of everybody will be encapsulated so that Kwara will continue to be great under our leadership.
“I want to assure you that your message is well received and it is part of the agenda with which we want to move Kwara forward”, he said.
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