A SHORT SPEECH DELIVERED BY DR. ABUBAKAR BUKOLA SARAKI, CON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE, AT THE INAUGURATION OF THE BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF THE PEOPLES DEMOCRATIC INSTITUTE (PDI) HELD INSIDE THE NEC HALL OF THE PDP NATIONAL SECRETARIAT ON NOVEMBER 7, 2024.

1. Let me first express my appreciation to the organisers of this event for braving the odds and putting together an event that will resuscitate the Peoples Democratic Institute (PDI) and make it serve better the purpose for which it was established. 
2. The PDI is supposed to be the intellectual arm and ideas centre of our great party. It is these ideas that define a party, lay a solid foundation, speak, and give hope to our members and supporters.
3. Unfortunately, the Institute has failed to play the same role as its American counterparts. Similarly, our great party, the PDP, has as a result of the laxity and ineffectiveness of the PDI not benefitted from the other major political parties in advanced nations of the world that rely on the exchange of solid ideas as the basis for partnership and support.
4. I remember in 2019 when I visited Germany with some of our young entrepreneurs, during my discussion with some of the political leaders, I found out that PDP could benefit from the International Democracy Union and the Democrats Union of Africa which are two beneficial institutions to us. I facilitated the process for the PDP to join the IDU and subsequently the DUA. These are the advantages and benefits that we should look ahead to derive. I hope the party is following up with playing active roles in these two organisations.
5. I hope the inauguration of this new board and the unveiling of the road map for the future will correct all these and chart a new way forward. I am sure the DG, Dr. Edward Adie, and other key forces behind the Institute will not just gather all these eminent Nigerians present here for only a show or photo ops but will work the talk and start making the Institute serve as Ideas Centre for the leading opposition party in the greatest country in Africa. There are similar organisations across the world that have been waiting to work with us to share the best ideas, a lack of which constitute a stumbling block to our good image.
6. Those who know me know that I am a stickler for planning. I believe if you have a plan for moving forward, you will not get stalked, stumble, become confused, or completely miss the road. If a problem arises, with the implementation of the plans, a solid plan will lend to its executioners an alternative road to take. That is why they say those who fail to plan plan to fail. This is what our party should focus on and on which we should be directing our energy and efforts. This is more important than for us to be individuals pursuing only our ambition without a platform that properly articulates policies and ideas that strongly resonate with the people. So, it’s not just about power but about the people.
7. Let us all support the Institute to become insulated from internal politics and become a solid idea-generating Centre so that at every point in time, it can help the party, its leaders, its governors, its parliamentarians, its local government chairmen and councilors, its administrators at the state and local levels, and even ordinary members, to distinguish themselves in the service of our people and our country.
8. The PDI should help us to articulate what PDP represents in terms of ideas, where we stand on all issues, what we represent as a political party, what differentiates us from other parties, what we will do differently if our people return us to power, how we would govern better, and what our history is. Let us use the PDI to sustain and deepen democracy. Let us fill the Institute with good hands, great minds, excellent researchers, and analysts.
9. However, a party that has no backbone of ideas incubating Centre that is up and doing can not successfully confront the challenge that the country presently faces and return joy and happiness to our people. But we must work towards this. We must show we are a party of ideas, not just ambitious individuals.
10. This Institute can be used to network internationally to grow our democracy and to become part of the cross-fertilization of ideas with similar political institutions in older democracies of the world. The potentials of this Institute are limitless and greater than we can immediately envisage or talk about. It is up to us how we harness the possibilities.
11. We must also use the PDI and other organs to let Nigeria know what we achieved for our country under the PDP umbrella between 1999 and 2015 and what we can do again. We can do better if we work together and put our best foot forward. The PDI should be one way of demonstrating that we can do better.
12. Finally, l congratulate members of the Board of Trustees and management of the Institute for their inauguration. My congratulations also go to the party leadership under Amb. Damagum, for initiating the reinvigoration of this PDI. I am happy that we are here. I urge all of us, leaders of this great party, to be ready to support this Institute at all times. For it to serve the purpose of its establishment, it requires our support in terms of making our time and resources ready to back its management.
13. I believe that with our support, the PDI Board and management can hit the ground running, but they should run a positive race, a race to a new frontier for our party and our country. It’s not a hopeless race to nowhere and a bleak future.
14. Thank you.