We'll make Nigeria flow with milk, honey, says Ogbulafor

I hope this is not just political talk o! Nigerians right now are not in a right frame of mind for silly jokes. With the damning revelations coming from power probe, housing probe and even aviation probe, any cheap political talk is not welcomed at all o!

As far as I am concerned, the PDP chairman is overwhelmed with his new office hence he is talking carelessly. We need action to be matched with words and not even after he said he wants PDP to be in power for 60 years! Haba! We will all be ruined by then


We'll make Nigeria flow with milk, honey, says Ogbulafor
From John-Abba Ogbodo, Abuja

NIGERIANS have been assured of the commitment of President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua and the leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to making the country a land "flowing with milk and honey."

The National Chairman of the party, Prince Vincent Ogbulafor, who said this on Wednesday night, expressed the resolve of the President and the party to "make whatever sacrifices that are necessary to accomplish this."

Ogbulafor, during an interactive session with journalists, also disclosed that as part of measures to ensure that the governors of the party matched their electoral promises with action and operated within the ambit of the PDP manifesto, the leadership of the party would set up an evaluation team to monitor the performances of its state chief executives.

"If we are actually called to serve, we should put our lives into the service and live above selves. What will it pay a person if he gains all the things in this world and remain on negative side of history? Yar'Adua and the party will like to make history. The seven-point agenda touches every aspect of human life. With the support of Nigerians and the blessing of God, the President will implement the agenda and the country will be a beautiful place for all to live and milk and honey will be flowing. What we need is unity of purpose. We need peace, unity and love," he said.

Ogbulafor reiterated that his election and that of the President came as an act of God and that made the challenge very unique. But he gave assurance that both Yar'Adua and the party would work hard to make life better for Nigerians.

"My emergence as national chairman is divine, purely an act of God. It therefore throws a lot of challenges to me as a person and a true Nigerian. If you look at the composition of the National Working Committee, members were carefully selected, fire-brand Nigerians, enthusiastic to move Nigeria and the party forward," he said.

The PDP national chairman described President Yar'Adua as a silent operator whose emergence was by divine intervention. He noted that people who emerged through such circumstances would always be ready to offer services without counting costs and expressed the determination of the present PDP administration at all levels to remain on the good side of history.

He wants Nigerians to support the President and the party, pointing out that with such support, Yar'Adua would be able to implement his programmes and put smiles on the faces of Nigerians.

"Yar'Adua is a silent operator and his election is also is divine", he said.

Still expressing gratitude to God over his emergence, Ogbulafor recalled that two weeks to the national convention at which he emerged, he was admitted in a hospital and had given up hope, but God still made it possible for him to emerge as national chairman. He maintained that power flows from God, stressing: "That is why when I see some people struggling for power, sometimes, I laugh. God crowns and equips the person."

He reiterated the resolve of the present leadership of the party to practise internal democracy in the party so that it could return the party to the status envisaged by the founding fathers. He disclosed that as part of these efforts, the new leadership had started reaching out to aggrieved members who left the party with a view to wooing them back. Ogbulafor also said that the party would ensure a harmonious relationship between the Executive and the Legislature through constant dialogue and would give all members a sense of belonging.

The national chairman said in line with the manifesto of the party, the leadership would put a mechanism in place to ensure strict compliance by the governors and local council chairmen. He, however, expressed satisfaction with that which of the governors on the platform of the PDP had done but said the party would still put together a team to monitor their performances.

"Fortunately, our governors are putting a lot on ground to ensure development. We will rule this country for the next sixty years. The challenges are enormous. We will ensure that every member complies with the constitution of the party. The party will put in place a monitoring team in all states to monitor what our governors are doing. The challenge is to build a virile place which all of us will be proud of", he said.

According to him, it is the hope of the party to attract all Nigerians to join PDP through a superlative performance and added that "I will not care if Nigeria becomes a one party state controlled by PDP."

The national chairman concluded that the leadership of the party was eagerly awaiting the outcome of the work being done by a committee set up to review the report of the reconciliation committee headed by former Vice President, Dr. Alex Ekwueme, so as to begin the implementation that would return the glorious days of PDP