I may fall short of words to express my emotion and gratitude for the opportunity I have received to be the newly sworn-in Secretary of the Kwara State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
May I first and foremost, use this medium to appreciate the leadership of the party led by its national leader and President of the 8th Nigeria Senate, His Excellency, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, CON, the State Working Committee, the three senatorial districts, the sixteen local government areas and one hundred and ninety-three wards’ executives, elders, women, stakeholders and members of the party for finding me worthy of the hitherto vacant position at the party secretariat.
I extend my sincere thanks to my family, friends, loyal supporters, most especially the youth wing of our great party and others, who so inculcated such capabilities in me that I felt confident with their support, I will discharge my duties and responsibilities to reposition our great party. Also, I thank all the apolitical Kwarans and my fellow youths from other political parties who trusted me and have put their faith in me as the window through which they can come into our great party. The time is now!
It is a verifiable fact that I have been an active grassroot politician who has been a regular ward meeting attendant for more than two decades. This will not change even as the State Secretary as I strongly hold the belief that all politics is local. My media activeness was just my youthful contribution to the party as there was a wide vacuum to be filled decades ago, which we did voluntarily to help the structure.
As the life wire of the party, my agenda for a strengthened internal democracy mechanism are:
- Strictly adhering to my official roles as stipulated in the party’s constitution which includes; ensuring meetings are effectively organised and minuted, liaising with the Chairman to plan meetings, receiving agenda items from committee members, circulating agendas and reports, circulating approved minutes, checking that agreed actions are carried out promptly.
- Uniting the party by serving as a strong bridge between the old and young party members and those newly coming into the party. Thus, abolishing the misconstrued “CORE MEMBER” of our political family that tends to malign some committed members from deserving patronages.
- Ensuring and enhancing the functionality of all the 3 senatorial districts, 16 LGAs, and 193 wards secretariats in the state.
- Working in cooperation with other executive members in driving the state secretariat according to their purviews.
- Digitizing the activities of each office in the state working committee towards having a viable database that is capable of winning future elections for the party.
Not glossing over the awareness of our political adversaries, we shall discretely conceal to ourselves other strategic agenda as our magic wand to repositioning our party for subsequent elections in the state as the strongest opposition party that it is.
My engineering background taught me that a team is like a toolset; not one tool can do all the jobs, but together they can. So, my elders; fathers and mothers, and fellow young members of PDP in Kwara, let’s join our hands together to work with team spirit in the day-to-day functioning of our great party in providing the needed opposition capable of putting the heartless All Progressive Congress (APC) government on its toes and rekindling the hope of the masses in Kwara that PDP is the best option to take them out of the hardship brought upon them by APC.
As a committed Sarakite, I consider this call to leadership a truly exceptional opportunity. It is not lost on me that there are thousands of other dedicated members within our ranks. This responsibility serves as a constant reminder, one that will remain etched in my consciousness as I embark on my duties. I understand that I am the representative of all of you, and I am fully aware that my performance will be the benchmark by which our collective efforts are measured.
I pledge to be the embodiment of a committed Sarakite, steadfastly upholding our core human values and party principles in every constituency. My commitment to you all is unwavering, and I will not falter in my dedication to our course. Together, we will strive for excellence and work tirelessly to achieve our goals, knowing that our unity and determination are our greatest assets.
Your collective support demonstrates that you trust me to be your voice, and I cannot thank you enough for your trust. I pledge to take us to greater heights and to complete all of the goals in my set agenda.
Once again, I say thank you for your past and anticipated support. I vow that I will not take this position lightly, and I am well aware of the responsibility that you have given me. I’m hoping that with your assistance, I can guarantee that we all have a great time and that all issues are immediately remedied.
E-signed:
Abdulrahman Abdullahi Kayode,
State Secretary,
Kwara PDP.