The Lagos State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has reacted to the defection of several party members to the All Progressives Congress.
The party attributed it to a lack of gainful employment.
Recall that Hakeem Amode, a former PDP spokesman in the state, and other PDP chieftains announced their defection at a news conference in Ikeja on Monday.
Speaking on the development while addressing newsmen, the Deputy Chairman of the PDP in Lagos, Tai Benedict, stated that the politicians were running helter-skelter because they have no stable source of income.
He said, “You see, when you are in politics and you are jobless, you are bound to lose when you are out. If you have a job, you are doing, I mean, either you are an artisan, or you are a farmer [sic]. You must get a source (of income) apart from politics.
“It is only when you just have politics, that you will see that everyone is running helter-skelter. Because they know that once that avenue is closed, that is the end.
“Somebody like me, I am a farmer. I produce dairy. I am still producing dairy in large quantities. That is what I do. And I do it for food.”
Lamenting the defection, Benedict said, “We all know what is happening. We all know what is going on. We know that people’s hands are being soiled. I’m sorry for Nigeria.”
When asked if he thought his party members were being bought over to the APC, he replied, “They have not been bought over. But the interest of a lot of us, a good number of people, is not Nigeria.
“So many people are not interested in the country; they want to be at the helm of affairs by all means.”
On what the development meant for the PDP in Lagos, he said, “Some will come and some will go. We don’t even know what is going to happen to the PDP, generally, nationwide.
“There is a correlation of the thing what is going on. We don’t know how many of us will remain in the PDP. We don’t know how many of us will go into isolation.”
