Defeat not the end for PDP —Balogun

A leading figure in the Peoples Democratic Party in Oyo State, Lekan Balogun, has said that the party can survive and bounce back after its defeat in the last general elections if leaders at the national level are prepared to accept changes.In an exclusive interview with our correspondent in Ibadan, Balogun said certain conditions must be established by the party elders, lamenting that some prominent party members showed traces of arrogance during the run-in to the elections. He said the behaviour contributed in part to the party failure.He said, “A number of factors will determine the survival of the party. The reaction of the party leaders at the national level to the defeat is crucial. The leaders must determine the event that led to the failure and deal with it appropriately. This defeat is an indictment on the party leadership.“Supporters of the party at the grassroots must also realise that defeat does not signify the end of a cycle.PDP was the biggest party in Africa and it must do everything to bounce back. This is not the end of the road for us. It is not the time for blame games but it must be said that some ministers became power drunk and inaccessible as if they were not part of the party during the election.”While assessing the manner of PDP’s defeat in the South-West, Balogun called on the party to investigate the genuineness of the defeat with the view to determine its future. He however said that within the party during the elections, many decisions were not based on reality.