Akwa-Ibom State governor, Godswill Akpabio has been appointed chairman of a committee to raise funds for the day to day running of the ruling PDP.
The party National Chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur said the committee is neccesary to address finally the issue of sustainable funding of the party.
Tukur charged the committee to assist the PDP to mobilize resources to enable the party to carry out good work. “I charge you distinguished citizens to help this party mobilize resources to help PDP carry out good work,” Tukur said.
In his remark on behalf of other members of the committee, Akpabio announced that the panel would visit other countries to study how their political parties were funded.
According to him, the panel would visit the headquarters of the African National Congress (ANC) in South Africa, Labour Party in the United Kingdom and the Democratic Party in the United States of America with the view to understanding the manner they generated their finances.
The Akwa Ibom state governor who assured the party of the readiness of his committee to turn around its financial fortunes stated that all members of the panel would act as a team in the exercise.
Akpabio expressed delight over what he called the unique nature of the PDP particularly in sticking to the name it started with since inception.
He noted that the PDP was the only party that is devoid of ethnic and regional coloration among other political parties in the country.
“Look at our opponents they are always changing name, and they may change to panadol in 2015,” he said.
Governor Ibrahim Shema of Katsina State serves as deputy chairman of the committee which also has the deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu, as member.
[Tribune]