BY EMMANUEL AZIKEN, POLITICAL EDITOR
Governor Bukola Saraki, executive governor of Kwara State, the chairman of the Governors’ Forum and a former presidential aspirant, was recently appointed the chairman of the PDP Reconciliation Committee. The Governor in this interview expresses how his committee will discharge its mandate. Excerpts:

What is the essence of the ongoing reconciliation in the PDP at this time?

Reconciling now will go a long way to brighten our fortunes in the elections. I think also it makes the reconciliation even more successful.  Doing it after the elections could be akin to crying after spilled milk. So I think it will be better if we can try and find solutions now to help heal whatever wounds are there, and also to be able to go to the elections as a united family.

If you look at other parties, and you look at their candidates in some of the states, they are PDP members that have left the party for one reason or the other. And that shows you that if we get our acts together then the strength of other parties will be less.

Do you think you have enough time to do genuine reconciliation between now and the first week of April?

I think we do. The success of genuine reconciliation is a function of the mind set, not necessarily of time. It is more about agreeing that everyone has to make some sacrifice. What do I mean by that? We must ask ourselves: what is this all about?  Is the primaries an end or a means? I see contest within the party as a means to go into elections, form a government and deliver good governance to the people. I think most PDP members share this mind set.

The task of reconciliation will be easier once we all agree that the ultimate as PDP card-carrying members is that we want PDP to continue in government; that our policies are the best for Nigeria; and the best thing out there for Nigerians is a PDP government. Once this is what is driving us as party members, we must be able to sacrifice our own personal ambitions and personal grievances for the interest of the party. It is about being selfless, about the bigger picture. That is the kind of sacrifice I think we need now.

It is difficult, I know. But you see I have just been through the process myself and you know the outcome. For me, however, a PDP government is better any day than a CPC government, than an AC government, than an ANPP government. So I don’t believe that not being given the opportunity to achieve my ambition should be at the expense of the party.

The major cause of disagreement this time around is the contentious issue of zoning. Do you seriously believe that the competing positions on zoning can be reconciled?

Remember that the issue of zoning was a disagreement within the PDP family, and I believe that the PDP family can always resolve its differences.  A number of us that felt there was an agreement on zoning, and we insisted on it. We went into the primaries, and at the end of the day, the majority, despite all the arguments and issues that were presented, said this is the candidate that they will like to support.

Now in going forward, it shouldn’t just be a case of the majority having its way. Because it is the same family, it is important to pay attention to the issues raised before and during the primaries and find ways to pacify and carry along those who feel aggrieved by the decision of the majority. As loyal party members, we should ask ourselves, what are the alternatives? Is it an alternative that the party should lose?  I don’t think so.

Beyond the party, it is also important that we look at the bigger picture. It is important that we do not stretch our luck too much as a people. We should concentrate more on things that unite us and less on things that could divide us. Don’t get me wrong, am not saying everything is perfect. In fact, I feel there is justification for the way a lot of people feel. But I ask myself that what are we doing all this for? Is it to make Nigeria better? I believe the answer is yes. But in the process of trying to make Nigeria better, we should not jeopardize the unity of the country.

Having been a member of the NPLF, do you think that the members will concede on the issue of zoning?

Yes. Let’s look at it this way. The personalities involved are people who have made sacrifices for this country at all levels in their careers- all of them. They are not people you can just wish away and people you can call opportunists.

Is it the former vice president, who was a vice president, had his views on certain issues and stood by his views and principles, and in the process lost a lot of things and who has always been associated with democracy? Or the former president, who has been in the military and made countless personal sacrifices for this country? Same with General Aliyu Gusau who has made a lot of sacrifices for this country in different capacities.

These are all people who feel very passionately about keeping this country one. They are also strong PDP members. Even if the former vice president left the PDP for another party for a short while, he was a founding member of the PDP. After the primaries, they have all remained in the party, they have not gone to court. Their conduct and body language do not show that they want to bring the house down. But it is important to reach out to them as well as others who feel

aggrieved at different levels and make sure that their concerns are brought on board. This is what this reconciliation is about.

Can you tell us the full details of the reconciliation plan?

There are challenges in different areas, some larger than others. We will look at everything, but given the time constraint, we will concentrate on areas that will directly affect the fortunes of PDP in April. Apart from the national level, we need to ensure that we go into the election as one family in critical states.

In most of the states, we need to create roles for our national and state legislators that are not returning and ensure that they work for the success of the party. Also, there are key stakeholders in different parts who we need to sit down with. We need to show them that we are serious about reconciliation, that we understand their feelings, and that this is not a case of whether you want to come along or not, but that the party needs them, and that the party is ready to meet them half-way.

Some people have challenged your suitability for this role on account of your age and experience.  What do you say to that?

The larger part of this work is at the sub-national level. I believe that given the position I have held as the governor of a state for about eight years now and as the chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, I have a good working relationship with party people across the country. Also, as someone who was a presidential aspirant and was pro-zoning, I have a good understanding of the burning issues.

I don’t think this should be about age, as important as that could be. It is about the sincerity of purpose to try and make something work. And I am looking at not just in the immediate, but also in the long term. We shouldn’t be shaking anytime we are approach a primary election and getting worried about whether we are going to survive as a party. We should be able to come out of our primaries stronger. But we need to get the processes right, let people have confidence in the processes, but more importantly than that is for all of us to know that the party is supreme.

The processes, even in developed democracies, are not perfect. You can always find something to say, things to be tinkered with. But to be able to say “No, I draw the line here.” It is like when sometime you get a Supreme Court ruling, it is the last stop whether you like or don’t like it. We should see the outcome of our primaries the same way: accept the verdict, whether we like it or not. Dumping the party or working against the party should not be an option.

It is alleged that you are not in a good position to effect reconciliation considering that Kwara delegates voted against the NPLF consensus aspirant?

I think everybody in the state knows what my position was as an individual. But the people of Kwara had to decide as delegates and individuals on which way they want to go. And I believe that there were many considerations that went into that. I believe as an individual and as a leader, and with the kind of democracy that we practice, I do not think we should not allow individual delegates to be able to express their own views.

I know people who will say or expect that definitely that one’s view should be that of the entire state. And people were comparing states after states. I don’t believe that votes from some of the other states were solely due to the position of the aspirants from those places. I think that in those states, the voting pattern reflected the view of the larger community. This might as well be the situation in Kwara too. I think the voting outcome reflected the wishes of the larger community back home, rather than just the view of one man.

But there is this general perception in Nigeria that the governors are in total control of all the delegates from their states.

I won’t say that the governors are totally in control of delegates from their states. I won’t say so because don’t forget that this time around the process was different. In the past, we were allowed to use our commissioners and our advisers but this time around you could not use any of your political appointees. And I think that if you are detached from the process, you could see where a delegate from Kwara will look at it objectively. By the night of the election, it was pretty clear on what the outcome of the results would be.

It has been observed that you are increasingly close to President Goodluck Jonathan, post primaries.  What’s going on?

Well by virtue of being a PDP governor, by virtue of being the chairman of the Governors Forum, I think definitely there will always be avenues where we must work together. I think it was just a very strange period at that time because I was contesting. With that out the way, things have reverted to normal.

Rather than talk about increasing closeness, I will talk about restoration of normalcy in the interest of better cooperation between states and federal. I have responsibilities that must make us work together. As a PDP governor, it is my responsibility that President Jonathan wins. As chairman of Governors’ Forum, my responsibility is to ensure that there is cordial relationship between the federal and the state governments.