PDP insists on 2014 Confab report for restructuring

• Accuses APC of plot to frustrate plan
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday said that it had rejected what it called an attempt by the All Progressives Congress (APC) to manipulate the system and frustrate the widespread clamour for a genuine restructuring of the country.

Specifically, the opposition party alleged that the APC planned to smuggle what it described as the partisan report of its committee on restructuring into the National Assembly to replace the 2014 National Conference Report.

In a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, PDP alerted the nation to a fresh ploy to blackmail the legislature and create an impression of commitment to restructuring, just to beguile the people and soften the ground for personal political and particularly, presidential ambition ahead of the 2023 elections.

“Our party stands at the forefront of efforts for genuine restructuring, but we hold that the authentic materials for a genuine restructuring are contained in the 2014 National Conference report, wherein, Nigerians, across all the divides, collectively provided a road map out of our constitutional quagmires, and not a partisan report by the APC,” PDP said.

“It is unacceptable that the 2014 National Conference report is shelved by President Muhammadu Buhari, since his predecessor in office, President Goodluck Jonathan, personally handed it over to him in 2015 for implementation.

“We urge President Buhari to bring out the report, dust it up and present it as an executive bill to the National Assembly to guide the desired amendment to the 1999 Constitution (as amended) with regard to restructuring,” the statement read in part.

According to PDP, Nigerians need a genuine effort towards a holistic amendment process that will restructure our country in the areas of true federalism, devolution of powers, electoral reforms and unbundling of critical items in the exclusive list.

“It is rather unfortunate that those who hid in their shores to dismiss and blackmail the PDP on restructuring are now coming out today to sell cosmetic and partisan notion of restructuring to Nigerians as a decoy to further their selfish political ambitions” the party said.

PDP insists that what Nigeria needs is a restructuring that is genuinely derived from the people and which guarantees true federalism, equity, justice, fairness as well as national cohesion, and not a partisan document being bandied by the APC.