NIGERIA: PDP EDUCATES CANDIDATES ON PLATFORM

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 ABUJA 000061

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR AF/W AND INR/AA
NSC FOR CHUDSON

E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/10/2017
TAGS: PGOV PREL KDEM NI ELECTIONS
SUBJECT: NIGERIA: PDP EDUCATES CANDIDATES ON PLATFORM

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Classified By: Political Counselor Russell J. Hanks for Reasons 1.4 (b)
and (d).


1. (C) SUMMARY. In an attempt to communicate a unified party
ideology in the campaigning for the 2007 elections, the PDP
party held a three-day retreat for all its candidates. The
retreat focused on educating the candidates on the PDP
Manifesto, a fifty-page policy document outlining objectives
and specific actions in all sectors of Nigerian policy.
According to leadership within the PDP, the decision to adopt
a concrete policy ideology comes with the risk of losing
dissenting members, but it is a necessary step in the
development of the party. The document is sufficiently
detailed to offer a "roadmap" and clear guidance around which
party candidates can shape their campaigns. In so doing, the
manifesto also sets standards to which elected officials can
later be held accountable and promotes an issues-driven
agenda for the 2007 campaigns. Whether the new manifesto
amounts to mere empty campaign promises or a new paradigm
remains to be seen and will depend not only on the elected
officials themselves, but on willingness of the Nigerian
public to demand accountability. END SUMMARY.


2. (SBU) PDP leadership held a party "retreat" on January
8-10 in Abuja for all candidates, from president to local
assembly, to present a unified party platform for the
upcoming elections. Though announced at the last minute,
Poloff estimates 1,200 candidates and interested persons
attended the event. Presidential candidate Umaru Yar'Adua
and his vice presidential running mate Goodluck Jonathan were
in attendance for select presentations on Monday and
Wednesday. State and local government candidates were also
well represented. Poloff noted the attendance of Nigerian
Diaspora representatives from the U.S. and Trinidad as well.


3. (C) Unlike the somber national convention in December,
this event took on an almost festive feel, with candidates
mingling and continuous discussions (both inside and outside
the event hall). The event itself was much more a
presentation of the party platform, with media present and
papers presented by current administration officials and
academics, than a thought-provoking retreat. Contrary to
press reports which circulated alleging "protests" at the
retreat by National Assembly members not backed for a second
term, the only sign of disagreement or dissension came in
response to the presentation by an INEC official on elections
preparations. Even then, however, comments and questions
(though dissenting in nature) were professional and polite.

PDP MANIFESTO -- DEFINING A POLITICAL IDEOLOGY
-------------- -


4. (SBU) The retreat centered on educating PDP candidates on
the party Manifesto, a fifty-page document outlining party
policy in all areas of the national interest, including
education, economy, natural resources, defense, environment,
industrial policy, health foreign policy, housing and others
(some 35 in all). The manifesto provides a clear party
platform upon which candidates are to run as well as an
overarching ideology in the form of its mission statement:
"to build and sustain a nation with a vibrant economy
designed to serve the people's interest, in which good
governance, market forces and transparent institutions
combine to enthrone a free and democratic society that will
guarantee equity, justice and equal opportunity to all
citizens."


5. (C) According to party leadership, the manifesto was
developed with the intent of unifying the party and providing
an ideology. Agape Kramer, Assistant Director of the PDP and
Coordinator of Foreign Chapters, told Poloff that given the
hasty formation of political parties in the run-up to the
1999 handover to a civilian government and the focus on
personalities rather than substance, there is an ideological
vacuum. Kramer admitted that the establishment of a concrete
platform may mean the party loses some members (as consensus
in a party as large as the PDP is nearly impossible),but,
she maintained, it is a necessary step to becoming a "normal"
policy-driven party capable of setting the agenda for a
nation. COMMENT: The centering of political parties and
agendas on personalities rather than policies has long been a

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shortcoming of the Nigerian party system. While this
represents a clear attempt to improve on the system by
establishing an ideological basis for the party, it must also
be viewed within the context of recent changes to the PDP
constitution which make Obasanjo the only individual eligible
to chair the party. Among the stated objectives of the
manifesto are several references to the party leadership as
the source of policy direction to the government and
strengthening the relationship between the party and the
government. END COMMENT.

PDP OBJECTIVES - CONTINUING THE NEEDS REFORMS
--------------


6. (SBU) Based on the administration's National Economic
Empowerment and Development Strategy (NEEDS),the manifesto
is a clear continuation of reforms begun under the Obasanjo
administration. The manifesto outlines the progress made
under the current administration, overarching objective on a
federal, state and local level, and specific steps to achieve
the objectives for each of the 35 areas. Priority is given
to programs to: reduce poverty and recreate a middle class,
reform the banking sector to promote small and medium
businesses, enhance the delivery of public sector services,
increase land ownership as a form of capital for
entrepreneurs, improve infrastructure, create a national
database to include a national identity card and housing
address system and the promotion of peace, security,
stability and sustainable growth.


7. (SBU) Objectives and the steps to be taken to achieve them
are at times sweepingly broad, though in general they are
sufficiently detailed to form a concise platform for the
party. Economic objectives are focused on developing a
middle class, creating easy access to transferable property
rights, protecting vulnerable groups through initiatives
designed to integrate them in the formal economy, and
improving investment in physical, human and social
infrastructure. The manifesto also outlines "irreducible
minimums," concrete national minimum standards in specific
sectors. A few of the minimums outlined include:
EDUCATION:
-- free and compulsory basic education and physical
rehabilitation of all schools
-- improvement in teacher/student ration and provision of
mid-day meal for all students
-- 100 percent school enrollment and reduction of illiteracy
to 10 percent
HEALTH:
-- free medical services for women and children under five
-- rehabilitation or construction of a standard health care
center in each ward and a general hospital in each local
government area (LGA).
RURAL DEVELOPMENT:
-- provide potable water in all communities
-- improve quality of life through deliberate policies that
increase economic opportunities


8. (SBU) In an effort to ensure implementation and track
progress on the key objectives, the manifesto plans for a
joint annual public forum to be held at the federal, state
and local level each year for the review of the performance
of elected officials. The manifesto calls for such forums to
include elected officials and "party stakeholders," though it
does not spell out who may be included as stakeholders.
Failure to adhere to the party objectives will be sanctioned
by the party as a form of misconduct. The party leadership
envisions the development of a monitoring and evaluation
framework in the coming months to be used to monitor the
performance of specific officials.

A NEW KIND OF LEADER -- HONOR, INTEGRITY AND DISCIPLINE
-------------- --------------


9. (SBU) A recurring theme in the presentations at the
retreat was also the need for a new paradigm among elected
leaders -- the emergence of "a critical mass of patriotic,
motivated, disciplined, honest, hard-working and progressive
leaders" who will be "islands of honor and integrity."
Copies of the PDP Code of Conduct and Desirable Qualities
Index were distributed and the theme of accountability to the

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Nigerian people was repeated throughout the three-day event.
Presenters called on PDP candidates to raise the professional
level of politics through adherence to the Code and personal
accountability, to include living up to campaign promises and
not making promises that can't be kept. The Code
specifically calls for adherence to all laws (specifically
the Electoral Law, Nigerian Constitution, and all party laws
and regulations). It prohibits the disruption of lawful
rallies, political meetings or other activities of any party
or candidate. As well, it prohibits any activities capable
of inciting violence to prevent opposition political
activity. It specifically refers to the recruitment,
engagement, sponsorship, funding or encouragement of thugs or
terrorists. With regard to party conventions, congresses and
events, the Code prohibits the paying of bribes, encouraging
of supporters to case more than one vote, tampering with
ballot boxes, procurement of election results, or recruitment
of mercenary voters to disrupt polling.

COMMENT -- A POSITIVE STEP
--------------


10. (C) COMMENT. The PDP retreat represents a positive step
in Nigeria's democratic development. Not only does it
represent a first move by the PDP to establish a basic party
ideology upon which its candidates can campaign, but it is
the first real attempt by any political party to define
itself by an ideology rather than an individual. While the
notion of the party setting a political agenda for the
government may leave room for speculation that this is but
another attempt by Obasanjo to remain in control after he
leaves office, the positive externalities cannot be ignored.
By publishing concrete steps to be taken at federal, state
and local levels to achieve party objectives, the party has
opened its elected officials up to the possibility of being
held accountable to the voting public for achieving those
objectives. It has also raised the ante in the political
landscape, putting down a marker of a party ideology that is
not personality-dependent. Whether the new manifesto amounts
to mere empty campaign promises or a new paradigm remains to
be seen. Given past history, success will depend not only on
the elected officials themselves, but on the willingness of
the Nigerian public to demand accountability.
CAMPBELL