Chief Eddy Olafeso, a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has clarified that those who recently met with FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, did so in their personal capacity—not as official party representatives.

Speaking to The Nation over the phone, Olafeso, who led the PDP campaign council for the November 2024 Ondo governorship election, explained that while there’s nothing wrong with people meeting privately, it wasn’t a party-sanctioned gathering.

“That was not a PDP stakeholders’ meeting,” he said. “They were simply concerned individuals.”

He noted that if the party were to call an official meeting, there’s a standard process that involves the National Working Committee (NWC) issuing formal invitations to recognised stakeholders.

“We don’t have any constitutional body called ‘concerned citizens’ in the PDP. So they can’t speak on behalf of the party,” he added.

Despite the disagreement, Olafeso stressed the need for peace and unity in the party as it works to reorganize and move forward.

“Our party is working on restructuring itself. We’ll soon begin proper meetings and the public will hear from us in due course.”

Quoting American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Olafeso signed off with a reflective note:

“If we could read the secret history of our enemies, we should find in each man’s life, sorrow and suffering enough to disarm all hostility.”