We made a mistake fielding Jonathan – PDP

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has apologized to Nigerians for disappointing them in the past 16 years.
Chairman, National Planning Committee of the conference, Dr. Raymond Dokpesi, said this at a news conference in Abuja on Tuesday.
Dokpesi, who spoke in company of members of the planning committee for the conference, said PDP made errors but was ready to effect changes.
His words: “We are aware that there were errors we made. We admit that we made mistakes and we have not met the expectation of Nigerians and we tender unreserved apologies for these mistakes.
“You must have seen the Ike Ekweremadu report on why we are apologising. There was no internal democracy, there was impunity within the party and there was no level-playing ground for members of the party.
“Zoning principles of the party were abandoned and a gamut of all other issues, which will come out during the conference and for all these and the people who have been offended, for people whose toes were stepped upon, we also tender unreserved apology.
“These are the reasons why we are begging and apologising. We want to assure every founding member of the party that we deviated from their visions, and that’s why we are going to have all our founding fathers like Adamu Ciroma, Dr. Alex Ekwueme and other members of the G.34, to come and talk to us at the conference.
“For every and any mistake we have made, I therefore say, we tender our unreserved apologies.”
Dokpesi said the party ought to have allowed the northern part of the country to complete its term when former President Umaru Yar’Adua died in 2010.
He said, “The party in 2010 and 2011, made the first round of mistake of not allowing the north to complete its term.
“That was when the party gave a special favour for the then President who came to compete the term of Yar’Adua to be allowed one term to finish.
“The same small leaders of the party came forward in 2015 to state again and refused to return the party to allow the north to field the party’s presidential candidate, they manipulated the party to do the same.
“Make no mistake, the PDP is aware that there were errors made along the way. We admit that at certain times in our past, mistakes have been made, we did not meet the expectations of Nigerians.
“But the past is exactly what it is. While we should not forget the past and its errors, We must look forward and begin to show true leadership within and outside our party.”