6 September 2018 PRESS BRIEFING ON PACT
The OurMumuDonDo Movement has always believed in the power of building coalitions by bringing different people, groups, and institutions of different backgrounds together to fight for a common cause.
This view is also doggedly rooted in our ideology as a movement, that to have a paradigm shift in Nigeria, there must be a synergy among like-minds, a convergence on a common ground, and a strong and formidable union, by exceptional young Nigerians who believe in the liberation of our dying nation from the hands of the old cabal.
We believe in young Nigerians with the integrity to combat and defeat the hegemony of those who have turned the positions of authority and leadership to a renter post for the vision-less and irredeemably corrupt. It is in consonance with the foregoing, that the OurMumuDonDo Movement, led by our convener, CharlyBoy, met with some young presidential aspirants, and members of the Presidential Aspirants Coming Together (PACT) initiative, all of whom are vying for the highest office of service in Nigeria – the office of the president, on 31 July 2018, to facilitate among them, the process of presenting a united front in the coming 2019 presidential election.
It is important to note, that on this day, three options were reeled off to the aspirants by the group: Option A was for the aspirants to unanimously agree on who would be projected as the flag-bearer of their United Front, and that this would be done before their respective party primaries – to save cost and time. Option B was for the aspirants to wait until they had all gone through the party primaries in their respective political parties, and then gather to elect their consensus flag-bearer for a United Front.
The difference between Option A and B is that unlike Option A where the would-be flag-bearer of the United Front is not necessarily the presidential candidate of his political party, Option B provides a flag-bearer who is actually the presidential candidate of his political party. Presidential Aspirants like Omoyele Sowore and Kingsley Moghalu were more disposed to Option B, and they were both forthright about it during the meeting. However, a slim majority of the eleven presidential aspirants at the meeting on the day agreed to go for option A as they expressed the uncertainty of their emergence as the presidential candidate in their respective political parties. They also agreed to come up with a modus operandi among themselves, which will facilitate the process of presenting a United Front. It is, however, unfortunate that things did not really go down well with the PACT initiative and they were unable to present to the Nigerian people, a decision that represents the true yearnings of all Nigerians.
However, we believe there are bound to be stumbling blocks in every great endeavor, and that should never deter us from achieving a great cause. At this point, however, we recognize the demand and exigency of having a young, visionary leader, who truly embodies a paradigm shift, and is acceptable to the majority of the Nigerian people. It is, therefore, important to inform the Nigerian people within and outside the country, that after due consultations with highly respected Nigerians, opinion molders, and social influencer across different divides of our society, we are convinced that without the participation of the Nigerian people in the process of electing a flag-bearer for a United Front, and their endorsement thereof, the process is incomplete and void.
We are convinced that the fate of our great country Nigeria, and the fate of One Hundred and Eighty Million Nigerians cannot be decided by seven people. This will be no different from the old ways which we seek to correct. We are convinced that a fundamentally crucial element in our democracy is popular participation. Indeed, there can be no significant achievement without public participation in the process of having a presidential candidate that will represent the real yearnings of the Nigerian people.
We, therefore, announce, in view of the foregoing, that the OurMumuDonDo Movement strongly disapprove of any process or emergence of a consensus candidate that is devoid of the Nigerian people’s participation or approval. We also wish to advise the leaders of the PACT initiative, very strongly, that further discussions on presenting a United Front for a young presidential candidate, should be postponed until the completion of presidential primaries in all concerned political parties.
This will guide us better in the process of making the decisions that will truly benefit our great country, and also improve the standard of living for all Nigerians.
SIGNED: Charles Oputa Convener OurMumuDonDo Movement Adeyanju Deji Convener Concerned Nigerians Ariyo Dare-Atoye Coalition in Defence of Nigerian Democracy Moses Paul Mad Connect.