Jonathan, PDP govs plan states' rallies

Strategies to make the rallies being planned by the Peoples Democratic Party in zones and states hitch-free took the centre stage on Monday evening when President Goodluck Jonathan met state governors elected on the party's platform behind closed-doors.

Governor Theodore Orji of Abia State disclosed this to State House correspondents at the end of the meeting which ended around 11pm at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

Orji said the planned rallies were meant to sensitize people and formally receive some politicians who recently defected to the party.

He said, 'The meeting was in compliance with what the President promised us that he will be meeting regularly with PDP governors. He met with us today (on Monday) and we reviewed party activities, especially the rallies that we are going to hold in the states and zonal levels.

'The rallies are meant to sensitize people. In Owerri, we are going to receive some people who are coming back to the party. In other states where people are coming back to the party, they will be received formally. We discussed about party affairs.'

When asked whether ongoing consultation by the President has to do with his planned declaration of interest in the 2015 general elections, Orji said, 'It is the President that knows when to declare. This consultation is what a President should do. A President should consult with his subjects, that is what he is doing.

'Declaration is not the issue now. The President will declare when he wants to, he will tell you if he wants to run or not. As of now, what he is doing is to interact with stakeholders and that is the function of the President, to meet with his people.'

The governors who attended the meeting included  Sule Lamido (Jigawa); Liyel Imoke (Cross River); Ibrahim Shema (Katsina); Martins Elechi (Ebonyi); Theodore Orji (Abia); Ramalan Yero (Kaduna); and Gabriel Suswam (Benue).

Others are Seidu Dakingari (Kebbi); Idris Wada (Kogi); Babangida Aliyu (Niger); Jonah Jang (Plateau); Isa Yuguda (Bauchi); Garba Umar (Taraba); Emmanuel Uduaghan (Delta); Bala Ngilari (Deputy, Adamawa); JohnJonah (Deputy, Bayelsa) and Mukhtar Shagari (Sokoto).

Vice President Namadi Sambo; National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Alhaji Adamu Muazu; the party's Deputy National Chairman, Uche Secondus; Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator Pius Anyim; and the Special Adviser to the President on Political Matters, Mr. Ahmed Gulak, also attended alongside the President.