By Angela Atabo
The Zenith Labour Party (ZLP) on Sunday elected former Gvernor of Ondo State, Dr Olusegun Mimiko, as its presidential candidate for the 2019 election.
Mimiko was elected as a consensus candidate by members of the party in Abuja at its national convention.
The presidential hopeful said that he would leverage on the party’s social democratic ideological orientation to convince Nigerians to work with him.
He said that with the party’s pedigree and those of its leading lights, he would not have trouble convincing Nigerians why the party is the preferred option for them in the 2019 elections.
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“As a social democratic party committed to the enduring principles of good governance, utilitarianism and a restructured federal system for Nigeria, ZLP is set to capture the imagination of Nigerians.
“The party will lead the process of renewing the Republic.
“I am resolutely committed to a programme of restructuring the Nigerian federation.
“This is with a view to affording every segment of the country the opportunity and privilege of development at its own pace.
“This will be done in such a manner that the age long beauty in competitive development will be fully tapped.”
Mimiko said that he was persuaded beyond any doubt, that such restructuring would give vent to the spirit of Nigerians.
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He added that the spirit of accomplishment, which had made stars of individual Nigerians all over the world, would be ignited again.
Mimiko urged members of the party not to be intimidated by the big parties, but concentrate on the size and weight of ZLP ideas.
The former governor also urged the party to focus on the purity of its ideological commitment.
“We must focus on our compassion for the weak and the poor in society.
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“We must focus on the clarity of vision and thought that we bring to the fore for Nigerians as we go into the elections.”
Mimiko said that it was with the confidence in the ability of Nigerians to make existential decision in the 2019 elections that he made a decision to serve.
He stressed that he was out to disrupt settled assumptions, by focusing on new ideological narratives that affected the people directly.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Mimiko governed Ondo State between 2009 and 2016 under the platforms of Labour Party and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), respectively.
Mimiko had earlier declared his presidential ambition under the Labour Party but later defected to the ZLP.
The Chief Returning Officer and Chairman of the party, Dan Nwanyanwu, said that Mimiko fulfilled all the party’s requirements and obeyed the constitution of the party.
Nwanyanwu reiterated the party’s support for Mimiko, adding that the ZLP would go all out to ensure victory for its presidential candidate.
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