A Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential aspirant, Samuel Ohuabunwa, has expressed disappointment that delegates from his state didn’t vote for him at last Saturday’s 2023 Presidency Special PDP National Convention of the party.
He disclosed this while speaking about the party’s presidential primary election on a Channels TV programme on Monday morning.
Abia State, the state of origin of the politician, had 17 delegates but he got only one vote in the primary conducted in the velodrome of the Moshood Abiola National Stadium, Abuja.
Ohuabunwa said, “I thought more people were going to vote for me, people from my state.”
The pharmacist said he was disappointed delegates went for money rather than vote for aspirants based on merit.
He said, “One of the chairmen said to me ‘Mazi, what you have said and the way you are going is the best way. Nigeria can’t get it better but you can’t change it from outside. Go and look for money wherever you can get it. Call me when you do. You must be inside to change things’”.
He said there is a political culture of bribery in the country, adding that it would take a while to change a culture.
“When I came into the game, I even said I was not going to buy drinks, I was not going to give logistics.
“You will come to a meeting and people will walk out on you. They said I am not serious.
“I began to fight that culture and at some point, it was a tough choice,” said Ohuabunwa.
He said spending so much money to serve people did not fit well into his understanding, “but that is the culture”.
He said corruption is endemic and visible in the country and needed to be tackled holistically.
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