'PDP don scatta, dem don frustrate me'

BBC News

05-02-2025

Nigerian lawmaker wey dey represent Delta north senatorial district, don port from di Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to di ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
Senator Ned Nwoko officially announce on di floor of di Senate on Wednesday 4 February during plenary say im don defect from di PDP to APC.
Tori bin dey fly upandan recently say di Nigerian politician don comot from di major opposition parties for Nigeria.
Oga Ned for dis exclusive interview wit BBC Pidgin confam say im don port true-true and im tok why im comot from PDP afta over twenty years.
"Yes I don comot from APC, now I be a card carrying member of di APC and I don resign formally last week from PDP".
"PDP dey in disarray, you dey see di fights for television, you dey see di crisis, we bin get hope say PDP go be a formidable (strong) opposition but no be wetin I experience for di last two years".
Im explain say dis na di first time wey im dey for opposition goment and e no dey favour im pipo concerning projects wey suppose happun for di state wey go beta dia lives.
According to am, di pipo wey vote am suppose benefit and one of di reasons wey im decide to make dis "sacrifice" na sake of di over fifty years agitation of im pipo to get dia own Anioma state.
Im also tok say di leadership of di Peoples Democratic party don fail at evri level and di kasala wey dey for di party na wetin dem no go fit solve again.
'No opposition for Nigeria, PDP crisis no dey solvable'
Senator Ned Nwoko tell BBC Pidgin say, "di hierarchy (leadership) of PDP no know wetin to do" sake of say, opposition no dey for Nigeria and e dey pain am well-well.
Im tok say im do tok-tok (consultation) wit im pipo and im bin tink say to dey opposition wey dey vibrant, wey get di interest of di pipo for dia mind go help democracy grow for Nigeria, but no be so e be for di PDP.
Di Peoples Democratic Party, na one of di oldest and strongest political party for Nigeria between 1999 to 2015 wen former President Goodluck Jonathan lose election to former President, Muhammadu Buhari.
But since 2015, PDP dey struggle to reclaim power for di centre (federal level) but e neva work for dem.
Tori about how di political party dey struggle and how dem dey try to settle kasala among demsefs both internally and externally dey enta news evritime.
Na some of dis wahala dem wey di party dey face Senator Ned Nwoko tok say make "di problems for PDP no dey solvable" and na why im port.
"Di pipo wey for help PDP settle dis crisis within PDP like Atiku Abubakar and odas don decide to comot from PDP to form a mega party, na wetin I sabi, so as dem dey comot from PDP, di kasala now go plenti becos now we go get two opposition parties wey no go fit really compete wit APC".
Im add say di only way to get beta opposition for Nigeria na wen di new mega party wey di pipo wey wan break out from PDP wan form, join bodi wit di second opposition party.
According to di Delta state politician, if di two political parties stand on dia own, e go make tins worse as e no go give dem chance to compete, and na wetin im dey avoid for im pipo.
'PDP no dey support di dream to create Anioma state'
Anoda reason wey di popular businessman give na say im wan fight for di creation of Anioma state for di South East geopolitical zone.
Im say Anioma state na wetin im wan achieve and if joining APC go help am achieve dis tin for im pipo, im ready to make di sacrifice.
Im say since im begin push for di creation of Anioma state wey im describe as di state of equity, wey im pipo don dey agigate for since, im former political party, PDP no support am but na APC pipo dey support am.
"Di creation of state na a veri difficult process I understand, but South East, Ndi-Igbo deserve one extra state, to make am six just like di oda zones except North West wey get seven.
Most of my members dey look at di sixth state, wey dem dey call equity state, so dat di Igbos go get a sense of justice and belonging.
"South South get six states, North Central six, North East six, South East five, and di young ones for South East dey fight for recognition and justice, dem dey fight becos dem dey marginalised."
Ned say di injustice wey di South East dey face since di war don do, and as war time don pass, time don reach make dem get justice wit dis Anioma state creation.
'I no wan be Govnor of Delta State'
Di Nigerian lawmaker tell BBC Pidgin say im no get any ambition to become di govnor of Delta State.
Im say wen di time reach, im wit oda stakeholders for di state to sitdown do tok-tok about who go become di state govnor for 2027.
Im add say young pipo dey wey dem fit choose from and im dey sure say APC go produce di next govnor of Delta State even though di state na one of di strongholds of PDP now.
"Di pesin go sitdown wit us, we go tell di pesin say dis na di tins we need for Anioma, Delta North, Central and di South, we go sign agreement, we go get a projected performance for four years. If you agree we go sign am, if you no agree, we go look for anoda pesin wey go develop di pipo and di infrastructure and empower di pipo."
Di former PDP lawmaker say no mata wetin happun in future, im go dey APC so far as e go benefit im pipo and im no go just dey for APC dey look pipo face.
"I go be a key player for APC, I no go be observer or by-stander, so di tin wey suppose be for my pipo, dem must do am for my pipo" im add.
On Tinubu policies and di future
Concerning some of di policies wey di leadership of President Bola Tinubu don bring, oga Ned tok say even though e dey tough on di citizens of Nigeria for now, wit time, evritin go dey alright in future.
"Di reforms on taxes dey pipo friendly, e go help small business and pipo wey no dey earn a particular amount of money."
"I dey happy say di govnors from di north wey bin dey oppose am, no dey oppose am again becos dem don understand say, to get tax laws wey dey togeda under one document, is better, instead of having one million tax laws evriwia"
Im add say, opportunity dey for anybody wey no dey happy wit di laws to go tribunal wey go deal wit am.
Apart from di tax reforms and subsidy removal on petrol, oga Ned say oda areas dey wey President Tinubu go still touch wey go sweet im belle like di use of foreign currencies for Nigeria and di ban on importation of non essentials goods.
Im say na dis tins dey spoil di economy for Nigeria and if goment stop am, di economy go grow.
"Wen we stop to measure our naira wit Pounds and Dollars and we become self sufficient wit our local products, wen our economy good, evribody go benefit from am. Weda you rich or poor no dey important becos evribody go dey happy.
But all of us must dey prepared to go through a period of planning, wen we do am, at least you go know say in di next five, ten years we dey try to get Nigeria to a level, make we tighten our belt but e must be across board, from local goment chairmen to govnors and di president." Im conclude.