The former candidate for governor of the People’s Democratic Party of Lagos State (PDP), Dr. Ade Dosunmu, expressed in this interview his optimism that the party will not only win the elections for governor in the state, but also defeat Congress. Of All Progressives (APC) in the presidential elections of 2023. With MUYIWA ADEYEMI on issues that will work in favor of the party.
Why hasn’t the PPD been able to win the Lagos State gubernatorial election since 1999?
There are several reasons responsible for the inability of the PPD to win the elections for governor in Lagos state. If you look at it from 1999 to now, you will find that the PDP has made steady progress. The result of 1999 cannot be compared with that of 2003 until the last elections of 2019. This shows that the PPD has strengthened in an attempt to win the elections in the state of Lagos. It is not that the result has gone down, the PDP has shown strength over the years; it’s just that the effort hasn’t culminated in victory. However, we hope that this time, all things being equal, the PDP can win the elections for governor in Lagos.
What will you say about the internal crisis of the party?
By the nature of politics, a political party is an amalgamation of interests of different origins that come together for the purpose of winning elections or forming a government. And so there must be some kind of disagreement, but the most important thing is that we do not agree to agree. So, the internal crisis is not only peculiar to the PDP, it is what is seen in all political parties and the APC is not free from internal crisis either, it has a leadership crisis, all kinds of crises, the same as the PDP. However, the most important thing is the ability of political parties to manage their crisis in such a way that it does not affect the parties or affect them at the time of the election. That is why you will see PDP after the congresses talking about reconciliation and that is ongoing. To a large extent, I don’t see any major crisis in the PDP, whether at the national level or in Lagos, that cannot be resolved.
What do you think the PDP can do to win the elections for governor of Lagos in 2023?
There is no particular winning formula other than participating in elections with comprehensive programs and strategies. And, of course, you will agree with me that by winning the 2023 election, our strategy to achieve this will not be revealed. But I can tell you that we have our strategy to do that and we are moving forward stronger. It will not be like in the past, it will be different this time.
Furthermore, the fact that APC has been in power in Lagos state for 23 years is a disadvantage for the party. What do they have to show considering the enormous amount of money that has accumulated for them over the last 23 years? What is in Lagos is commensurate with the type of resources that have passed through the hands of the APC government in the state. This year’s budget alone is 1.7 trillion naira, and at the end of the year you will see nothing to show that such a budget has been implemented in the state. The people are not stupid and I know that they are watching closely and I know that the people of Lagos are asking questions.
What is your opinion on the candidate election options, direct or indirect primaries?
The options to choose candidates for the elections should be left exclusively to the discretion of the political parties. It is the political parties that produce the candidates and they must be able to propose options that are suitable for them. I do not believe that it is the responsibility of the National Assembly to choose the option of the political parties. Rather, I think they should have left that provision as it was in the Electoral Law, where political parties had direct or indirect primary options, rather than eliminating indirect ones and adopting only direct primaries.
Political parties should have the freedom to decide which option to choose, which option to adopt during their primaries based on their own Constitution. That aspect does not need any modification. The whole process can heat up politics and cause unnecessary distractions.
What are the prospects for the PDP in 2023?
The outlook is very high now given the fact that Nigerians are now in a better position to compare between the PDP period and the APC regime. Now it is obvious that the PDP era seems to be better in terms of how it could have impacted the lives of Nigerians in the area of inflation level, exchange rates, fuel pump prices, etc.
They are things that have a direct impact on people’s lives. I think Nigerians are in a better position to decide now. Even during the last election, it was not a wide margin and you can see how close it was, speak less than now.
You know that the last election was a contest against an incumbent, but now the candidates that will emerge will probably be new and there will be a level playing field. Therefore, we believe that if all of this and the realities facing Nigerians now are taken into account, they will be able to vote correctly.
What is your opinion on the supposed dominant influence of the governors in the direction of the party’s affairs?
I am not going to say that the governors are dominant, rather, the fact that they are the highest political positions of the parties in the various states and they also have the numbers. When they come together, they are so formidable, they have the resources and they also control the machinery of government in their respective states. No one can wish for that.
Maybe that’s why you say they are dominant. Assuming the governors go in different directions, they won’t be as formidable as they are now. I also think it is good for our democracy that governors work in the same direction. It also helps to bring unity between the parties rather than the governors working in different directions. You know they also have the Nigerian Governors Forum which is like a clearinghouse for the governors where they exchange ideas, compare notes and once the issues are resolved in that forum each of them go to their platform. Respective party and executes them. Therefore, if the governors do not work together, if they work for contrary purposes, it will be more dangerous for the states and it will destroy them. It will be difficult for them to harmonize their interests. If they work together, they can disagree to agree and that is good for the party.
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