Following a recent court judgment that ended its leadership crisis, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has taken a bold step to restore the party in the south-east region by inaugurating Caretaker Committees to run its affairs in Enugu and Imo states.

South East Zonal Chairman of the party, Ali Odefa, who presided over the inauguration at the zonal office in Enugu, said the PDP was ready to contest and win the 2027 elections.

He told cheering party members at the secretariat that the 2027 general elections is not an ordinary contest but one that tests the conscience and resilience of Nigerians.

“It is a contest between good and evil; a contest between hunger and survival. It will not be PDP versus APC. It will be Nigerians versus APC. Nigerians are hungry. Those without access to food, hospitals, good schools, or meaningful and gainful employment will all come out to vote, and they will vote these people out.”

“Two weeks ago, someone brought an invoice from a shopping trip in 2014. He bought so many things, and the bill was about N25,000. He took that same invoice and went to the market to buy the same items, and his bill was over N500,000, which means there is about a 2000 per cent increase in the items in the market. People are hungry. It may interest you to know that in some places, people are picking from the dustbin. These days, they no longer embezzle these monies in millions or billions. We will not give up. This party will not give up. We will continue to do our part so that at the end of the day, posterity will judge us fairly,” he said

Odefa tasked the new leadership with working hard to restore the party, stressing that the challenges were even greater because those who had benefited from the party in the states had turned their backs on it.

“You have been called to serve. The job you have now is a very hard job. In your state, everybody has gone to the opposition. It is their right to go wherever they want to go. So you know you have a herculean task, without expecting support from people in positions of power and authority. So it calls for you to work very hard,” he said.

Enugu State Caretaker Committee Chairman of the party, Steve Oruruo, while responding, reassured that, with God and the people, the party would be fully restored in the state.

“I say this because it is a struggle between qualitative and quantitative voices. On their side, they have quantitative voices, but on our side, we have both qualitative and quantitative voices. So the people are going to suppress them.

“So in Enugu, there is palpable fear about what tomorrow may bring. Decisions have been taken in high places that may not be in favour of the party that laid the golden eggs, but the fear is that PDP will always rejuvenate with a thunderbolt and, of course, become a tsunami. We’ve already galvanised and have called on our people; they are already waiting for us. What we are going to do is give them that enabling environment and freedom to express themselves, so that decisions and credibility will determine the outcome of elections,” he said

Oruruo, a former Deputy Chairman of the party in Enugu, called on the national leadership to allow credibility and credence to take over the race, while tasking INEC on the quality of elections in the country.

“If they leave the election open, we are sure that PDP will scale through. We also want to assure you that the Enugu leadership have the credibility and doggedness to face the opponent, and whatever trick or style they come with, we are fortified enough,” he said.

He added that should the PDP offer credible candidates that the people love, it would amplify the party’s chances in the elections.

Oruruo, whose committee was inaugurated alongside that of Imo State, led by Jon-Jude Okeke, thanked the party’s leadership for the bold steps to rehabilitate the party.

He said the party’s survival in the face of various crises was an indication of how much Nigerians cherished the party.