A former governor of Oyo State and aspirant for the national chairmanship of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Rashidi Ladoja, has endorsed the position of Governor Ayo Fayose of Ekiti State on the need to prune the list of aspirants to the position from the South-West zone.
Ladoja, in a statement by his media aide, Alhaji Lanre Latinwo, said although there can be no gainsaying that all the aspirants from the South-West are eminently qualified, reducing the number of aspirants in the zone would help the zone maximise its chances of getting the position.
Fayose had, on Saturday, canvassed the reduction of the list of aspirants from the zone in order to brighten the chances of the zone in clinching the position of the national chairman of the PDP.
In the statement, Ladoja said there was the need for the South-West to present a common front at the national convention being the only zone that had not occupied the seat of the national chairman of the party.
“There is no doubting the fact that the South-West deserves to get the position of PDP national chairman, having been an integral part of the party for 18 years. The coming convention provides a golden opportunity for us to achieve that desire.
“But one of the principles of democracy which has it that the majority always carries the day means that the South-West cannot afford to go to the convention with many aspirants, while another zone from the Southern part to which the position has been zoned may present a single aspirant.
“The South-South and the South-East zones have eight PDP governors, while there is only one PDP governor in the South-West. This means the PDP is fortified in the South-South and the South-East zones.
“PDP will be strengthened in the South-West if, in addition to its only governor, the national chairman comes from the zone.
“It is, therefore, imperative that all the South-West PDP leaders convene a meeting of all the aspirants and stakeholders and find a way of ensuring that we go into the convention united by a common goal.
“Time is of the essence and the earlier we are able to achieve this, the better for the party in the zone,” the statement read in part.
