Police Blockade Of PDP Convention Was An Attack On Nigeria’s Democracy - Agbedi

Added: 2026-06-01

[00:00:01]All right, glad to have you back like we promised you.

[00:00:04]We have let's have this conversation with Fred Mwad PDP caucus leader in the House of Representatives on affirmation is it adopting Jonathan as their faction's presidential candidate.

[00:00:22]Fred, glad to have you here. I think this is second or third time I'm sparring with you. Glad to have you.

[00:00:27]>> Yeah, thank you. Great pleasure and good evening Nigerians and our viewers of Arise Television.

[00:00:34]>> First off, talk to us about all that went on there before you picked uh the certificate for Jonathan. Am I right you picked that certificate?

[00:00:44]>> Oh, yes.

[00:00:47]I was given the mandate you know, to pick uh the certificate on behalf of Mr. President, President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan you know, for onward transmission which you know, the party will at the due time organize an appropriate handing over ceremony. So, it's not just as if uh I was to take it and take it to him as a single individual or because I'm the leader of the PDP caucus. No. However, let me clearly say that I'm miffed for what I saw from sometime last night you know, to part of today. It goes to mean that this administration has further shrunk the political space in a democracy.

[00:01:42]It's very saddening, heartbreaking, you know, for me to see what I saw today.

[00:01:48]>> What did you see?

[00:01:49]>> In the fourth republic, you know, of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

[00:01:53]The PDP I the venue where it had proposed to hold our convention today, the 30th of May.

[00:02:04]And to our chagrin surprise, uh last night, you know, that venue was taken over by Nigeria's police force.

[00:02:14]Uh maybe be the FCT police or whatever, but Nigeria just have one police force, you know. And uh we're shocked that they locked the venue of our convention.

[00:02:26]They blocked the entire road from the left, from the right.

[00:02:30]They disallowed Nigerians access to that road.

[00:02:34]And in fact, disallowed the PDP access to a venue that they had officially transacted, you know, to hold their convention.

[00:02:46]The good thing is that the People's Democratic Party and our leadership and the supporters and members of the party stood their ground that this idea of shrinking the political space that Nigerians and politicians must ensure that they have vigilance over the political space. And if not that the PDP leadership and politicians were vigilant, today the convention would have been aborted. And in a democracy, yes, these are very ugly signals, very bad signs, you know, but the people must rise to resist it. And that's what the PDP did.

[00:03:29]I can also add that what the government of President Tinubu has done today through the FCT minister is to demarket Nigeria.

[00:03:42]Is to further tell the world that Nigeria is yet not a democratic space.

[00:03:50]That Nigeria does not practice free and fair democratic system of government.

[00:03:56]>> Who >> Because this ought not to have taken place today.

[00:04:01]>> I was going to ask you who because you called President Tinubu, he wasn't there. Uh Who locked the place? Who Who locked And where did he eventually even hold the convention? Who locked the place? I mean Who Tell who Who locked the place? I mean, the just asking the question. Who locked It's not a matter of calling it. So, who locked the place?

[00:04:27]>> The Nigeria Police Force is an agency of government. Is that not right?

[00:04:31]>> Yeah.

[00:04:31]>> And who is head of government?

[00:04:34]In Nigeria President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu is the head of government.

[00:04:40]>> Did he Did I say why they locked it?

[00:04:42]>> Within Within the FCT, the Minister of FCT >> Is in charge.

[00:04:48]>> of government. And so in a properly structured democratic system if your appointee is taking an action that is against the tenants the flourishment of democracy then of course the boss is supposed to say, "No, my government will not allow this to happen."

[00:05:10]>> All right, let's move >> And so when you when when you take your eyes off the ball and allow it to flourish, allow it to happen then it means that you sanctioned it, you approved it. And that's what I'm saying.

[00:05:23]>> Let Let's Let's move the conversation ahead.

[00:05:26]You Like we said before, we've we've identified that you picked the certificate. It's funny though to some people when you hear discussions. I mean, NRM held their convention.

[00:05:37]A woman emerged.

[00:05:39]We just watched the affirmation of Peter Obi for the NDC. And of course we watched that of A R M Shehu Makinde, NRM, APM.

[00:05:51]>> APM >> APM, sorry. These things are There are so many parties propping up. Then we watched Labour Party, sorry, Zenith Labour Party of Iwuanyanwu.

[00:06:01]But it's funny that in all that is playing out, Jonathan himself wasn't there.

[00:06:09]And Jonathan, too, hasn't said anything thus far.

[00:06:16]>> Beautiful. I thought that the first question you wanted to ask was if all these other parties >> Mhm.

[00:06:23]>> had their convention, you know, >> Okay, no no hitch.

[00:06:27]>> why why the PDP, >> Okay.

[00:06:30]>> And that is the issue.

[00:06:32]You know, PDP is the Fourth Republic.

[00:06:35]The Fourth Republic is PDP. One of the oldest parties that you can describe as one of the parties that made democracy what it is in Nigeria today is the People's Democratic Party. And so, when a well-orchestrated action is taken to frustrate PDP, it goes to mean that that is deliberate to ensure that they they they they they kind of reduce the competition space.

[00:07:08]>> Let me Let me rephrase Let me rephrase my question. In some quarters, the discussion is how can this faction of PDP be adopting Jonathan, who isn't saying anything at all as to whether he will contest or not? Why is he not showing up or saying anything?

[00:07:26]>> Okay. Except you are saying that when the government put us against the Nigeria police, you wanted Jonathan to come to that venue and either get harassed because it's not just the Nigerian police. We were pitched against the Nigerian police and thugs that were sent to come and unleash terror.

[00:07:52]>> But if you're going to lead a move If you're going to lead a movement, you have to show guts and be in front of the movement.

[00:07:58]>> But this one, it seems like Jonathan is hiding behind people like you to fight the battle for him. Oh, interesting. That's a good opinion, but let me tell you and let me correct you.

[00:08:10]Democracy is a process.

[00:08:13]Of all these people you see who are presidential candidates at the end of today are not None of them had been a former president of this country.

[00:08:25]Jonathan had been a president of this country.

[00:08:30]And so you don't expect that the way everybody condescend, you know, into the arena is the same way Jonathan should condescend.

[00:08:39]>> But this is a This is PDP tactics.

[00:08:42]>> And then yes, and then and and and then electoral electoral decisions are a process.

[00:08:49]>> Yeah.

[00:08:50]>> The process PDP tactically in this dispensation has taken is that a former president is coming to run election in our platform.

[00:09:02]And so we have a deliberately guided process to do something distinctly different.

[00:09:08]>> Oh.

[00:09:09]>> You know, and when finally And I've said this before, when finally the party unveils Jonathan, all these issues of affirmation as sole candidate of the party, all these issues of transmission of certificate of return to the president are all the processes. The party will eventually unveil Mr. President who had been president, who is an icon of democracy >> Former president >> Former yes who is an icon of democracy will be unveiled to Nigerians.

[00:09:45]>> Okay.

[00:09:45]>> We are doing a spectacular and different thing. Not the way you used to know it.

[00:09:50]>> So so it's a different thing. You and other Nigerians are worried.

[00:09:53]>> So it's a >> It's a different thing. Jonathan is not hiding. You know he's hiding or Jonathan is No.

[00:09:58]>> Okay. So so it's a different You're you're playing the game differently.

[00:10:01]>> differently.

[00:10:02]>> Just like Arsenal played differently today with PSG.

[00:10:04]>> Arsenal lost Arsenal lost their game.

[00:10:07]>> All right.

[00:10:07]>> I don't want to bring you into >> Before let you go.

[00:10:10]>> They lost three.

[00:10:11]>> Yeah. I'm I'm saying that they they played it differently. So you're playing it differently. That's [laughter] what you're trying to tell us. All right. A Rise News reporter had it on record that dogs attacked your lot who gathered at this convention. Tell us about it.

[00:10:23]>> Yes. We saw some dogs with sticks.

[00:10:28]You know descended on >> Is it Is it an event that was locked?

[00:10:32]>> Yes. An event point that was locked.

[00:10:34]That was what happened today.

[00:10:36]You know some of our members were attacked. They were hit with sticks. You know they were brutalized.

[00:10:43]And people scampered to safety.

[00:10:46]That is the democracy of this dispensation.

[00:10:51]And of course it's unfortunate. And that is why we are saying see all these this government is doing is demarketing Nigeria.

[00:10:59]Is demarketing democracy. And you say we are part of The world has become a global village. Whatever action you unleash on innocent citizens in your country, whatever illegal actions that you take, the whole world sees you within a split second.

[00:11:15]And [clears throat] so they will begin to have lack of trust. They will develop lack of trust in both your government and in your nation. And I've said this severally time without number that I had had cause to embark on official trips.

[00:11:32]And you see the way we Nigerian citizens are looked at by other nationals across the globe.

[00:11:40]These are the kind of actions because when people don't have confidence in your system when they see that your citizen system is skewed against the people then what do you expect? The world will isolate you.

[00:11:56]We are dealing with issues of insecurity and you see government unleashing terror dogs on innocent political supporters.

[00:12:05]>> Well, that's that's when you say government unleashing terror, that's an allegation. We don't know who unleashed terror on your party, but that's an allegation.

[00:12:14]I mean, you you can't say >> You you consider it as an allegation.

[00:12:18]First police is it not an official body?

[00:12:21]>> not the people that attacked the venue.

[00:12:23]>> wait, wait. Police went to lock down a venue that we had procured for our convention.

[00:12:31]What wrong did we commit?

[00:12:34]>> Well, that's understandable.

[00:12:34]>> I am a leader of the PDP caucus in the House of Reps. I'm an official of government elected. Am I a criminal? Not to assess a venue?

[00:12:44]>> All right. You you I mean you you have a point there. All right. Frank Fred Agbedi Sorry PDP caucus leader faction leader of the Turaki faction in the House of Representatives. [music] Thank you so much for throwing light on this. Nigerians [music] await and watch to see when you will unveil according to you former President Goodluck Jonathan to run for the presidential election come 2027.

[00:13:09][music] Thank you so much.