Former Bayelsa State Governor, who currently represents Bayelsa West in the Senate, Seriake Dickson, on Thursday defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to form a new political party, the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC).
Addressing a press conference in Abuja, Dickson attributed his action to the poor state of the PDP which he said might not even be able to produce candidates for the forthcoming general elections because of the crisis rocking the party.
He also pledged that the new party would serve as the most formidable opposition to the ruling the All Progressives Congress (APC) and would do everything possible to stop the administration of President Bola Tinubu to turn Nigeria to a one party state.
Dickson went on to criticise opposition politicians defecting to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), saying he would not have left the PDP if not for the party’s protracted internal divisions.
“Nigeria cannot be a one-party state. Nigeria is not designed to be a one-party state,” he said, stressing that the political, cultural and ethnic complexities of Nigeria require leadership that promotes unity, inclusion and mutual respect among its various groups.
The former governor said he declined to join the African Democratic Congress (ADC) coalition because he was unsure of the party’s agenda for the country, pointing out that the NDC’s manifesto is clearer.
According to him, “I don’t frankly know where the ADC stands on some of the issues that are very important to me.
“The NDC stands for true federalism in a democratic Nigeria and the devolution of power. The NDC stands for investments in education, healthcare, and security for Nigerians.
“Any political party that I will call my own must be clear on those issues. It is a good thing for people to gather in opposition (ADC coalition). But I want to ask, what is their agenda for governance? What is the agenda beyond gathering? And time will tell whether it is a coalition or a collision.”
Top Society reports that NDC was registered as a political party by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in February – the same month that Dickson joined his colleagues to demand the mandatory transmission of election results during the passage of the Electoral Act by the National Assembly.
