By Henry Umoru

ABUJA—NATIONAL chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Dr. Okwesilieze Nwodo disclosed yesterday that arrangements have been concluded by the party to amend its constitution where the number of automatic delegates being controlled by elected public officers will be reduced as that would guarantee a situation where no one single person controls the members’ votes at any convention at any level.

He also warned Nigerian politicians, especially the PDP members to forget about planning to negatively influence the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, as such antics would not work in subsequent elections in the country.

Nwodo who met yesterday with the harmonized Executive Committee of the Edo State chapter of the party led by its Chairman, Chief Dan Osi Orbih, Nwodo admitted that Edo and Lagos states posed a very big challenge to the party as difficult states to win. He however, told the delegation that the PDP must win Edo State in the 2012 governorship election, adding that members of the party must strategize, work hard if it must win the state, just as he stressed that it was not enough to wish to win.

The National leadership of the party noted that it was aware that some members were involved in anti-party activities, just as the party stressed that Edo State was one of the first states where reconciliation and harmonization had been done which saw to the emergence of late Samson Ekhabafe from Edo North as Chairman and after his death, Dan Orbih from the same Edo North replaced him.

The National Chairman who attributed the biggest problem in the party, especially in Edo State to that of internal wrangling and infighting which led to the defeat of PDP in the 2007 elections by the Action Congress, stressed that the national leadership of the party will carry out fundamental changes in the constitution to remove controversial areas that have been giving some aspirants undue advantage over others during primaries to pick the party flagbearers.
PDP ‘ll amend its constitution

The National Chairman noted that this would allow healthy competition as well as create level playing field for all aspirants at the party primaries.  “We are also going to bring about some fundamental changes in our constitution that are making things very difficult for us now. It does not make sense when people are going to primary election, and the result of the election is determined before you leave your house.

“This is because as the party constitution is now, it is possible for certain people because of the vantage position they have and the vantage position that our constitution give to them for one person to control 70 percent of the delegates that are coming to the primary and then the rest of 30 percent is being struggled for by other candidates. That is why I said the result of the election is known even before you leave your house.”