THE PATH TO SUSTAINABLE DEMOCRACY

At the 2001PDP Convention

Abuja, 10 November, 2001

Fellow Party Members, it gives me great pleasure to address this Convention of our great Party, the third since our glorious victory in 1999.

Let me begin by congratulating the new Executive of our great Party whose initial mandate should take us well into the all-important year 2003. We are all looking forward to you settling down, after hectic electioneering, to the task of mobilising and shaping up the Party. The task is far from easy, but the Party believes you are equal to it, that is why you gained the trust of the members who elected you. May the Almighty guide your decisions and actions.

As I said in my account given on the Forty-First National Day Broadcast, we have come a long way since the PDP Government was inaugurated almost thirty months ago. Some may say that things were so bad that we had started below ground zero. But by the Grace of God, gradually and steadily things are beginning to take shape, and there is more than a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel. Our infrastructure: power, roads, ports, fuel supplies have been revived and are improving as well as expanding. Confidence in the country has been restored and is strengthening. Investors, local and foreign, are showing keener interest in our future. Wealth is now spreading to larger segments of the society instead of being concentrated in a few hands. I expect the progress we are making to accelerate and become more evident as we march on.

It is indeed heartening to learn from reports that the electorate who entrusted us with leadership are talking of things getting better. At the same time, fewer and fewer Nigerians are inclined to suspect the actions and intentions of our Administration. We may not be perfect. And we can - and do - make mistakes. But we have one motive and only one motive: and that is to serve the people. And there is no mistake about that. The public recognition of this fact is evidence of a quantum leap in the social capital of trust in the leadership, as compared with the recent past when virtually all decisions were suspected to be primarily determined by selfish motives and agendas of those in power.

Let me express my sincere appreciation to the Vice President and members of the Federal Executive Council with whom all policies and decisions are routinely but thoroughly examined during our regular Council meetings as well as through constant direct consultations. Our guiding principle has been to make decisions that we can defend before God and man. And, if for any reason, a decision has subsequently been found to be wanting, we have not hesitated to unmake it. We aim to achieve good governance by staying on the straight and narrow path of accountability and transparency. And we are getting there.

Fellow Party Members, as you are aware, I have been visiting the various States in the Federation to see for myself the impact of the democratic dispensation at the grassroots level. Without exception, receptions in all the States have been very warm and enthusiastic. I have observed that by and large, democracy in action has caught the imagination of most ordinary people. Even though the scale of achievement and rate of progress vary from State to State, with some States doing remarkably well, while there is room for further improvement in others.

Fellow Party Members, let me commend the efforts of all the Party Officials for the recent nationwide congresses at all levels of the party hierarchy. The scale of the exercise alone befits PDP as the largest political party in Africa. And it also confirms our unchallengeable position in Nigeria. Things may not have been all smooth and hitch-free, but we pulled through, and we hope the lessons will help us improve next time round. It will not offend modesty if we claim to have been democratic, definitely more so than the other political parties, especially in the conduct of our national congresses, beginning from Ward level, through the State level, to today’s national Convention.

Fellow Party Members, there is no denying that our great Party has remained strong: it has creditably maintained the record of occupying the highest political grounds since the independence of Nigeria, with dominant roles in the majority of Local Governments, State Governments, and the Federal Legislature and Executive.

We, however, note with utmost sadness the occurrence of skirmishes during the congresses before this Convention. If all our members were to abide by the rules and regulations of the Party, there would have been no cause for the unfortunate and regrettable incidents. I would want all members of our great Party to join me in absolute condemnation of the behaviour of those who were responsible for obstructing the legitimate and peaceful means of electing our Party officials. Let it be a priority assignment for the new National Executive Committee to look into the incidents and make amends where necessary.

It is apt to point here the issue of election malpractice remains a threat to our nascent democracy. So also is the related issue of financing elections. Our electioneering practice simply does not have enough of the element of persuasion that is the essence of democracy. Instead we rely too heavily on winning votes with inducements and coercion. Malpractice is the option for those who cannot contemplate defeat and are determined to win at all costs. We cannot all win, and where there are winners there are bound to be losers. The new National Executive must apply itself to this problem within the intra-party elections. I intend to have discussions between all the political parties in this country on this matter. We can no longer continue to accept violence as an inseparable aspect of electoral culture.

Fellow Party Members, our record card shows remarkable progress in many aspects. We have been able to dialogue on contentious issues, and we have been able to douse tensions and iron out most of our differences. From the very beginning I have maintained that ours is a learning process, and a learning curve. Experiences have borne out this view. And so we note with satisfaction that the Executive and Legislative branches, both at the federal and state levels, are now co-operating and mutually reinforcing each other in their approach to governance. For once we have the President, Party Chairman, President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives working harmoniously. That is the way it should be, if the ruling Party is to fulfill its leadership role in serving the people efficiently, justly and equitably. Of course, working harmoniously, separately but together must not translate to undue intrusion into one another’s area of responsibility.

Fellow Party Members, permit me to say a few words about the relationship between the President and the Party Chairman, particularly the election of the latter. Much has been said about whether or not the President should have any say in the election of the Party Chairman. Putting this question differently: What is the benefit of antagonism between the Party Chairman who is elected by the party to serve the party and the President who is elected on a party ticket to serve the whole nation? What is the electorate supposed to make of this destructive and wasteful conflict between Party Chairman and the President to whom the mandate was given?

Our great party has adopted the process of consultation and election of national Party Executives. This process is laudable, if only because of the underlying democratic principle. And it must be jealously guarded and maintained. But the President and the Party Executive of the Party that produces the President must stick together. The very good reason for this is the truth that whoever - and by whatever means - ultimately becomes the Party Chairman has to work with the President in a manner that there can be no question as to who has the mandate to govern the country. Therefore, there can be no merit whatsoever, other than personal ambition perhaps, and therefore no room, for those who regard the National Executive, together with the Party Chairman, as alternate executive authority of the nation that can oppose the elected Government. And any members of our great Party who maintain this approach to party politics should better rethink.

Party officials need to be reminded that they are not government officials, appointed or otherwise. Party officials are remunerated from Party Headquarters, and they must stay away from day-to-day the executive decisions of the Government once the Party manifesto remains the guide for the President.

Fellow Party Members, as demonstration of democracy in action, everyone is not only entitled to his or her views but has the liberty to express this openly. But, equally important, such views should be brought up at the right time and the right place for dialogue and discussion, as far as the Party and the Government is concerned.

But we must distinguish here the difference between constructive criticism and dismissive criticism. Constructive criticism is when you have a valid opinion that can be tabled for discussion. Once this has been discussed, and, as a Party, we adopt it as a common position, it becomes part of Party policy.

Dismissive criticism is when your opinion negates or dismisses the Party, its policy and what it stands for. This is indiscipline. This is demonstration of anti-party spirit. This is acting against the foundation of the Party on which we all stand. This is a challenge to the very existence of the Party. You cannot so criticise the Party as well as claim loyalty to the Party. Either you are a loyal and disciplined party member and obey the Party regulations and seek redress through appropriate Party channels, or you are not with us. And if you are with us then you MUST abide by the core principles of what the Party stands for. Any criticism that negates accepted norms and principles indicates otherwise, and amounts to gross indiscipline. And, for the survival and functioning of our Party, indiscipline cannot be tolerated.

We must guard three things jealously in this Party, they are: organisation, relationship and discipline.

We have no equal in our demonstration of democratic practice. PDP tops them all. We are now moving forward. The only missing ingredient is discipline, and I mean discipline at all levels of office holders, from Ward level to national level, and the supporting behaviour of members wherever they are, whether they hold offices by political appointment or they are just members who are continually and effectively active.

How well we move forward, how well we advance towards the political vision that the Party holds for the country, is a direct function of how well we are organised: to sustain and uphold that vision, to march towards it, to implement it, and to monitor its progress. The cardinal element of such an organisation is discipline, where discipline means:

►          that we all obey Party rules and regulations,

►          that we all respect at all times Party policies,

►          that we all imbibe the spirit of leadership which the electorate expected, when they elected us into office;

►          that at all times we respect law and order within the Party, and the country at large;

►          that we act responsibly at all times to match our actions with the duty of office, either as party officials or political appointees; and above all,

►          that anyone who fails should be appropriately sanctioned in accordance with the Party Constitution and regulations.

Fellow Party Members, we do have a code of conduct. But there is ample evidence that this code of conduct is not being adhered to. The code of conduct underlay the regulations and the Constitution with which the Party aims to hold together as a Party as well as discharge its leadership obligations to the Nation. There is an imperative need to strictly adhere to that. And we must begin NOW! - without any if’s and but’s, or any excuses.

Fellow Party Members, we have every reason to be proud of the success of our Party. Our victory at the last elections was by any standard spectacular. But even more spectacular is our success in governance such that today PDP has become the centre of gravity of Nigerian democracy. And right now political analysts are beginning to reckon with the probability of PDP becoming the only viable political organisation in the country.

Fellow Party Members, let us remember that whereas our success might attract others to join us - and they are all welcome!, what really holds us together is the vision which the Party has for the country. We do not - and cannot - claim monopoly to the eternal validity of this vision for the nation. Of course, the electorate is the arbiter in this matter. So far we have the strongest appeal to the electorate. It will be useful for the Party and the nation if we can retain this trust and confidence for the first decade of this century, and beyond. And we should all work towards that, if only because, for this period, we have achieved success as the Party that embodies the hopes and aspirations of the majority of Nigerians. Our manifesto and leadership credentials are the best articulation of the basic elements of development, progress and good governance for this period.

Let us work towards the goal of laying and consolidating a firm foundation of quality leadership, while fully respecting the democratic underpinnings of our national constitution, which includes full respect for alternative vision, alternative perception of leadership, and the freedom of expression, as well as the freedom of association to articulate the alternative views. In other words, PDP will not - and should never - take advantage of its power in a manner that may appear to suppress views that are different, and by extension, appear to be moving the country towards a one-party State.

The virtue of democracy is that victory goes to the Party with the superior argument. For now we have the honour and privilege to have the superior argument. Let us use this position to serve our people to the best of our ability. Let us use it to demonstrate and lead the way on how political parties can thrive well, while allowing for alternative views and perception. We must reckon with the possibility of future circumstances leading to, and generating alternative vision and the alternative political ideology and perception. This will be healthy evolution of our body politic. This will be evidence of a dynamic society, as opposed to a society ossified and straitjacketed in a fixed political mode, or mind set, or ideology.

This is not argument for needless and irresponsible proliferation of political organisations and parties, which any individual or groups are at liberty to do within the provisions of the national Constitution. In any case, if we in PDP use our success democratically, and we faithfully abide by the relevant provisions of the Constitution, we will see political organisations come and go, according to how well they can morally, legally and politically justify their existence before the electorate. In the meantime, as the most successful Party, we have the responsibility to be the model of a healthy Party that is democratically organised, well disciplined and totally dedicated to the leadership and to the service of the nation.

Fellow Party Members, perhaps we need to remind ourselves again what our primary purpose is as a political organisation: It is to persuade the electorate to give us the mandate to serve our country according to our manifesto, which in itself is the summation of how we all wish to see our society organised. For us, as a Party, there is only one reward: to be electorally called upon to serve! There is need to emphasise this point because of the continual reports of Party Members demanding ‘what is in it for me!’, as reward for belonging to our Party, or having political appointment. This gives the impression that Party membership is a kind of investment that must yield dividend from the circumstance of the Party being in power.

There is no provision in the national budget for ‘reward’ for party membership. Those who elected us do not want - and do not expect - us to have such a provision. What they want from us is good governance. What they expect from us is dedicated and committed leadership. Reward for party membership is thus illegal, and demanding it is tantamount to looting the treasury. Needles to say that this is unacceptable under any circumstance, economically, morally, politically, socially, not to mention the unfairness and inequitability of such expectation.

Politics is not a business with investment and profit yielding dividends for Party members. Politics is not a career that is remunerated on a regular basis, together with service conditions of promotion and retirement benefits. An objective for us as a Party is to develop our society so that individuals can have independent means to pursue their expectations to be self reliant. For this purpose our personal aim for being party members cannot be other than to serve, enable and empower our community and our society!

In choosing to belong to our Party, each and everyone of us has opted to find and devote our time, energy, and even our resources, to serve this nation. This should be our pledge to the electorate. This should be our pledge to the nation. This should be our renewed pledge to humanity. This should be our pledge at every Party Convention - including this one of today.

May God bless and guide our great Party. May God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

I thank you all.