By Dr. Olu Agunloye
National Secretary, Social Democratic Party (SDP)
People are suffering and many are getting trapped in poverty by the day. SDP is positioned as the change-agent. The selling points are the Core Values, Ideology, Principles, Objectives, and the Cardinal Goals of SDP, not the shell of a party to be bought out.
Nigeria is not where Nigerians expect it to be, and the two political parties, APC and PDP, that have ruled Nigeria since 1999, have not done well. Injustice, corruption, “money for vote” elections and high insecurity have led to economic crisis, massive youth unemployment and pervasive poverty. People are suffering and many more are getting trapped in poverty by the day. In the face of these challenges, the emergence of SDP as an alternative platform for progress has become compelling. This is why all SDP leaders and State Chairmen are required to reach out to all people desirous of good governance to join the crusade for sustainable development and not leave this task only to our dynamic and charismatic National Chairman, Alhaji Shehu Gabam.
The Social Democratic Party (SDP) is inspired by vision, stimulated by genuine desire to serve and is proud to say it relies on ideology. Indeed, SDP is a strong and reliable brand. Its logo, the white horse, is symbolic of strength and integrity, easily identified on posters, billboards and ballot papers. The Party is spread throughout all the 774 Local Government Areas. Our selling point is not the shell of the party as a registered entity with INEC but its Core Values, Ideology, Principles, Objectives, and the Cardinal Goals which are briefly highlighted below:
a. Core Values – Integrity, Social Justice, Accountability, Anti-Corruption and Honour.
b. Ideology – Social Justice, Good Governance, Wealth Creation, Defence & Security, and Economic Development.
c. Principles – Rule of Law, Social Harmony and mutual respect, African Solidarity and World Peace, Social democracy and Good Governance and Respect for Human Rights.
d. Objectives – Equity, Stability, Anti-Poverty, Empowerment and Development.
e. Cardinal Goals – Food for All, Security for All, Electricity for All, Shelter for All and Jobs for All.
There has been an influx of diverse politicians including high-profile elites into SDP and they came with contending interests, understandably. Some are those seeking to build a consensus for good governance, some want a hostile take-over of the party, some just want to contest the 2027 elections at the Federal or State levels or be part of the push for a better Nigeria, while others are joiners who came to pursue personal issues or vendetta or to sabotage the party. As we harvest these momentous newcomers, the Party will take charge, be transparent, and remain committed to the principles of social justice.
As the party opens its secretariats to admit new members, it will reinforce its existing structures and organisation and implement full integration of old and new members to achieve high level performance to win elections. SDP will be fair to all new members and will create spaces, if necessary, to accommodate them and the resources and energies being brought to the table. However, the Party will not operate any mergers or be subjected to any merger rules. Also, the Party will not operate the “Clean Slate” model for any reasons and will not accept the “Take-over” model which intends to change the Party’s Name, its Constitution and Manifesto.
In managing the influx of contending interests, the party will cautiously avoid the pitfalls in previous alliances. For instance, during the efforts for change in 2013/2014, those advocating for alliance chose “Any Other but Jonathan, AOBJ” model and succeeded in electing “Anybody” who belonged to nobody and did not believe in any progressive ideology. Also, the 39-Party Coalition, (CUPP) of 2017/2018 was well put together but it signed an Agreement without the base principles and after it corrected this, it did not have enough time to implement its well laid out plans. The National Consultative Front of Comrade Wale Okunniyi, Prof Pat Utomi, Hon. Buba Galadima and Dr. Hakeem Baba Ahmed carefully crafted an “Agenda for Mega Party” in 2021/2022 but could not fully implement its last stage in the face of stiff INEC electoral schedules. As for the emergence of SDP as the main force, there is an advantage of a head start to consummate meticulous strategies, plans and programmes as well as their refinements. Considering that the three previous alliancing for electoral victory, including the AOBJ model which won elections, failed to produce a sustainable development in Nigeria, the SDP based convergence has to be meticulously handled in a transparent manner.
In the meantime, the Party will continue to boost the convergence of strengths on its platform by strengthening its institutions through enhancing its membership registration processes, strengthening its constitutional structures and party organs and reinforcing all Departments and Directorates. It will consolidate its expansion by ensuring proper registration of all new members, setting up Stakeholders Meetings and Action Committees for integration and programme implementation; but it will not accept any buy-out plans.
Dr Olu Agunloye,
National Secretary, Social Democratic Party. 21/03/25
