 You're welcome back. I did tell you that we're going to be talking about something else, not what INEC is doing right now. We're talking about the seeming, continuing war in the PDP as PDP suspends presidential rally in rivers. Wike versus Atiku, that's how we're just calling it. And to talk with us today is Opunabo in Kotaria. Welcome to the program, Opunabo. Good morning. Okay. We're also expecting Chidi Lloyd, Chairman, Emoja, local government area of River State to join us. But until he does that, we're going to be talking with Opunabo. I keep saying Opunabo. I don't know why. Well, the PDP, or River State rather, has always been a PDP state and a very strong state for PDP. And if not for the population, at least for the finances, PDP has always relied on River State for a lot of things. But now, like Chino Achebe would say, things fall apart and the center cannot hold. Is that a sign of what is to come that we're seeing from what happened in River State? What's really going on? It should be told. I mean, it's just the question of a strong user who is full of vibe. I mean, let's take on that vibe as the so-called advocacy for equity, internet, and trust so that our next peers will have a rudimentary grasp of what it's all about and to us to realize that the so-called, first-founded issue of equity, internet, and trust is for the software industry. The real issue has to do with losing the presidential tickets. And the comments made by IU, when he held the sub-state governor who stood down for a people that eventually led to the emergence of a people as the hero of the state. I was described by the national election or convention took place. We see that the presidential election is a convention private. And at that convention, he also imagine the geometry. The successor was from River State. Gold removal of River State is not a conjecture. He said so on several occasions. It was an exception by the governor of River State. And he also imagined. Now, that preceded the presidential election. And so, notwithstanding the measures of George IU, the delegates who went ahead to vote for active government. What does that tell you? They are not really bothered about where the German and the presidential candidates come from. They are more interested in the bigger picture. Somebody with the gravitas to win the election. Somebody with the clouds to win the election. And so, where the national general comes from, as far as we were concerned, was immaterial. It was inconsequential compared to the tax ahead. They failed to minimize the maximum and maximize the minimum. Because the issue of where the national general comes from and the presidential candidate is maximizing the minimum. The maximum is how to win the election. And after that, the governor of River State had said that he was going to support whoever emerges as the candidate of the government. After that he said that there was no candidate. There was no vote. He did not say, I will support a candidate on this condition. He did not say that. And after that time, as people was in the race, people that said, he is not on a matrix, then the national general must step down. Those conditions were not given. He just said, believing he was going to win at the personal problems. Even after he was bested at the priorities. When he got back to River State, he said to River State people, in addressing the state budget, we could all tell them that notwithstanding the outcome, notwithstanding the shortcomings, as a party man is going to support the article of UBACA as the presidential candidate of the meeting. So the best question is, what then changed? Now, why is it at all of a sudden you are talking of equity, fairness and justice? In terms of equity, even if you do it, you say, you must go. Going by the critical constitution, it is somebody from that zone that will succeed that. So in other words, what you are saying, which you have also said, is that you must have a self-analyzing. For you to have a self-analyzing as a presidential candidate, there has to be a convention. The question there is, do you have enough time to conduct another convention? Or are you going to go extra-constitutional, which is illegal? So say, you start another, please, start another, come. Without a convention. Is that what you are going to do? So it is reactionary, inexplicable. For you to say a self-analyzing as a presidential candidate, is committee like that? No, not yet, but you have to land. For you to say a self-analyzing as a presidential candidate, how will a self-analyzing like that? It's not possible. There has to be a convention. Unless you are going to dig up with the constitution. And you know there are procedural obligations if you have to do that. So I want you to consider the time. You don't have the luxury of time to show me. The target is winning the presidential today. After that, you can table all your privileges and the party will look into them and base on the merits and trust them. But you say, no, you must go. You have bonded with several officials that you have been the one responsible for the removal of the other chairmen. And do you think that your fellow governors are equally happy? What point are you trying to make? Are you trying to prove that BDTC is your property? You said you have spent so much. You have been denouncing the party. Peter deleted the nasty party. But Peter deleted never got it. The man you said should go. He just said you are a founding member of the party. I think you are a founding member of the party. Again, this is a party that has done so much for you that you can never in your lifetime pay back. Because it was on this platform you became a local government chair. Chief of staff, minister and government. It's like you saying to your father who trained you from Nautilus to the university? And you come back to say maybe you built the house for him but they left the roadblocks for him and so on. And now I have been sustaining you without any worry about you. You are only trying to show gratitude that's best. And because you are so far so close to expulsion the fact does not mean everybody should be tied to your responsibilities. Can we move on from this? And because you must go according to your facts you are saying you must go. That is where you have to go. That is exactly where we are now. Of the population. That doesn't depend on justice. Like I said. Who was the last presidential candidate or who was the last president of the country before Muhammad Mubarak? Can I just air my concerns now? Let me express my concerns now. Can you hear me well? I don't know if you have a fan on or something because there seem to be some noise but we can get you tolerably. If you can hear me well. My concerns for this discussion today did not really focus on Wiki. Yes, he is the protagonist or antagonist depending on where you stand in this whole thing. It is more on what the PDP stands to gain or to lose by the seemingly inability, the seemingly inability to resolve the issues within. But in your talking you raised a lot of things that sounded like PDP is only or usually only thinks about the end as something that justifies the means no matter what it is. So I'm asking simply when you were writing your constitution were you writing for the party or for the good of the country? I tell you why I ask this. Now if APC for instance has a candidate from the north and PDP comes and they say because they want to win and there's a candidate from the north and then after that they lose again to the APC and the candidate of the APC comes from the north and it comes back to PDP because it is not it is not you who fielded a candidate you still go back to the north. It doesn't concern you that even though the party that fielded a candidate that is leaving the office is from a particular region if you take that same region to be your candidate or the president from your party it is going to worry the people of Nigeria. Was it just to get the gains of winning an election or you hurt the people of Nigeria in mind? Because that's a concern for us. Okay, okay, okay. Okay. Well I guess that we're going to the fortunes of the past like the right decision. Now, let me state this I'm not a member of PDP I'm a bit of a policy party so I try to I'm voting for candidates across party lines depends on your dissidents and your perception my perception of you Now I will state this every party has its own constitution every party has its own modus operandi now as at when the PDP I strongly believe that they did not say if a candidate is from the north the next must come from the south whether that president was from another political party or not that couldn't have been the reasoning why I said that couldn't have been the reasoning it's simple you have a candidate from the north contesting on the platform of let's say this you also have a candidate from the north contesting on the platform of the PDP at the same time simultaneously if after that time they not on that for example have just succeeded the sitting president is from it is from and you have the PDP man who the last time was the south and needed to fill that out I even say oh no because they not on that if it is by the south it's otherwise you go to the south you not on that from the PDP don't contest you're not going to say that because if you don't put into consideration other political parties you did not that is number one number two in this particular instance only the south east it's only the south east that have not produced a candidate around the country and what was the agreement they formed a committee a zoning committee that a zoning committee was in place and I think to myself if it is zone to the south east I will not contest because it will be very offensive but if it is not going to be zone to the south east I will contest but every other zone have produced a president which is correct the whole thing was if it is such a only have to leave the party and it does not zone to the south east and the other committee that was formed now let it open which was the very effective government let it open and when you leave a ticket open you are saying everybody is qualified to contest and so if a candidate makes it from that contest it should not be a problem if you have been a problem you can accept no not a mess to contest and somebody because he is obdurate because he is obstinate decides to contest and wins you said no I decided when you thrown it open I said you thrown it open everybody is qualified to contest so the fortunes of the party now because whether article is a not a mess and not a not a mess as far as the PPP is concerned the last man who ruled before the war I don't like the word ruled because it is a singular technology the last man who ruled is a predecessor so he is also an equity candidate and justice no south turner to live in a test to contest if you have to go by that if you allow somebody from the south to contest it must be micro zone to the south and not the south side because good blood Jonathan is from the south side so if you be micro zone to the south so all those who from the south side who is equally contested I am clearly somebody from the north who contested but let us micro zone it to the south I have heard your argument so let's go to the fortunes of the party because you know no matter what if you have a stubborn child for instance in your family like our people say you cannot throw the child with the bat water so now that it seems PPP is not able to resolve their issues what are the fortunes of the party just briefly so that we can wrap up this segment the truth about it is of course whether you like it or not at risk of in politics it is not a good sign, it is not a good domain because politics is all about major Italianity so every good especially people every good will have and so if you argue reduction in number it is a minus but the question is is it a minus except the fortune of the party I can tell you categorically that even in riverside that people look at your you saw the last turnout when the people were there even in their way in other states you saw in their way the only difference is that the governors who are members of the G5 did not form a but their vice even came out their vice and I'm going to tell you that those ones who are not going to vote for article they are not going to have the support of two votes the only difference is that in riverside for example the votes might be divided because some who are actually loyal to the governor will not want to vote for article but I can tell you that even some who are working with him and those he thinks are even loyal he will still vote for article he might eat as people who have had 100% in riverside he might have 60 to 70% in riverside but that's the difference but that is going to win river people are and generalised for article I can tell you is going to win but probably not the number that you will be able to deal with but in this way it's going to win okay okay open up thank you so much for both giving us a historical background to what is happening and giving us this optimism that you have told us about the PDP it's good I would only say good luck to the PDP everywhere else not just riverside thank you so much for being a part of the program my pleasure thank you okay we've been talking with open up and he was telling us what is happening in riverside we will take another break when we return we will be joined by Olutayo Iratiola author, youth advocate and patriot stay with us