Ahead of the 2023 election, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) youths have urged the leadership of the party to throw the presidential position open.
The youths said that their position on the issue was against the backdrop of the clamour that the only way the party can get a better candidate in 2023 was to allow every interested person from any zone to contest the position in the primary.
Recall that when the zoning committee of the PDP led by the Enugu state governor, Ifeanyi Ugwanyi zoned the party offices last week, it said they were not mandated to zone the offices of the President, Vice President and other Executive and Legislative offices.
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The zoning committee, in its communique, had said, “the mandate of the Committee does not include Zoning of the offices of the President, Vice President and other Executive and Legislative offices of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. And the decision of the Committee to zone the Party offices does not in any way affect the executive and legislative offices in Nigeria.”
The PDP youths under the aegis of South-South Youth Vanguard, in a statement by its National Chairman, James Efe Akpofure, said that there are more benefits for the party if the presidential position is thrown open than to zone it to a particular region.
The group said that restricting the position will work against the party, adding that if the position is open for everybody it will be better because as a party is in opposition, seats shouldn’t be zoned at this point in time.
The PDP Youth Vanguard said: “We are of the opinion that the only way the party can make an impact in 2023 is to allow everybody to participate in the presidential race. This will give us that opportunity to come back to power.
“As an opposition party, this is not the time to zone positions as such will work against the party. Let us win first before we talk about the zoning position. We should make the position open so that the best will emerge.”
