The Interim National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, Mr. Lai Mohammed, on Saturday, said the party was optimistic that the Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi, and other rebel Peoples Democratic Party governors would join APC.
Mohammed told newsmen that they were still waiting for Amaechi to get back to them after consulting with President Goodluck Jonathan as he promised.
“Amaechi told us to give him time to consult with the President. We are still waiting for him. For now, we can say we are happy with the reception we got in all the states that we visited. We believe that soon we will be reaping the benefits,” he said.
Also a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress in Rivers State, Mr. Esuku Esuku, has expressed optimism that the state Governor, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, will soon dump the Peoples Democratic Party for the APC.
Esuku, who said the visit of the APC leadership to the state would not be in vain, added that the party would soon take the South-South geopolitical zone by storm.
Describing the APC as formidable, Esuku stated that every person that was of voting age was also an asset to the party.
“By the grace of God, I am a Christian and I work with faith. I remained in the ACN up to the day it merged with the CPC and ANPP to form APC. The visit of the APC leaders to Rivers State can never be for nothing.
“Governor Chibuike Amaechi will move to the APC. The signs are there and we know that every person that is of voting age is an asset to the APC, not to talk of a governor of a state,” he said.
He pointed out that the opposition party had demonstrated that it had the capacity to change the fortunes of the country with sacrifice and good government.
Esuku observed that the PDP failed as the ruling party because it refused to make sacrifices for the improvement of Nigerians’ living standard.
He said the merger of three political parties to form the APC was a sacrifice made by the leaders of the affected political parties in order to save Nigerians from the maladministration of the PDP.
He said, “The APC has demonstrated that it has what it takes to change the fortunes of Nigerians. APC has love for Nigerians and that explains why three political parties collapsed into one to form a formidable party.
“What the country needs is sacrifice. The PDP does not want to sacrifice for the country. The problem we have is that the PDP thinks it will stay in power forever. But the APC is saying the time has come for it to bring the desired change to the country.”