Abuja — The meeting summoned by the National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to discuss modalities for picking a consensus candidate for the party in the February 6, 2010 governorship election in Anambra State has failed to produce result.

The 47 PDP aspirants that attended the meeting failed to agree on the adoption of such a consensus candidate.

But they agreed on one thing: the procedures for the primary election.

The aspirants agreed that the primary election beginning on September 28 should be conducted with the use of the party's membership register and that fresh registration of party members should commence today and end on Saturday.

PDP National Chairman Vincent Ogbulafor while opening the meeting yesterday told the governorship aspirants to lock themselves up in a room and choose a consensus candidate.

Ogbulafor also read what could be the riot act to the aspirants, asking them to be orderly, responsible and disciplined.

He said: "We called you here to admonish you to be orderly, responsible and organised in the primary election to choose a candidate that would fly the party flag at the governorship election. Power belongs to God and He gives power to whosoever He prefers. There is the need for the fear of God to be in you as you prepared for the contest, but bear in mind that only one person would emerge victorious at the end of the day.

"So many people picked form in this contest, but only one person will emerge victorious. It is our wish that you lock up yourselves in one room and choose a consensus candidate among yourselves. Look at yourselves and pick a consensus candidate."

But no sooner Ogbulafor finished speaking and journalists sent out than the aspirants were said to have spoken against the idea of a consensus candidate.

Some of the aspirants who later spoke with THISDAY said they would prefer a transparent primary election where all of them would contest and have their fate decided through the ballot box.

However, there was an agreement among the aspirants on the procedures for the election.

Before the meeting, the aspirants were said to have been complaining about an absence of an authentic PDP membership register at the various wards in the state.

Benue State Governor Gabriel Suswam, who addressed newsmen after the meeting, said the party had agreed that all the available wards membership register shall be used for the primary election commencing from September 28.

"We know that there are more than one membership register in all the wards but this meeting has agreed that all the registers shall be collated and harmonised for the election commencing as from Monday, September 28," he said.

Before then, there were allegations that some aspirants had printed several PDP membership cards to be used at the primary election.

Suswam said fresh membership registration would commence from today till Saturday and all the registers sent to the Barn Hill Hotel from where he and members of his committee would be operating from.
He said three delegates would be elected at the ward congress election, urging delegates seeking election to come with their passport photographs to enable him append his signature on each delegate that won the election.

Suswam also said delegate forms would be sold at a price not lower than N10, 000 per delegate.

Over 750 delegates are expected to be elected from the 236 wards in the state.

All the delegates would assemble in Awka, the state capital, on October 2 at the state congress to elect the governorship candidate of the party.

Suswam also urged the aspirants to consider talking to each other so as to prune their number down.

He expressed optimism that the number of aspirants would be reduced by Monday.