National chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Iyorchia Ayu, has instructed past governors of the party to reconcile their colleagues who defected to other parties back to the PDP.

Mr Ayu stated this at a meeting of the members of PDP National Working Committee, with past governors and some zonal leaders of the party in Abuja on Tuesday.

“The first task I will give you (the former governors) immediately is to reach out to other of your colleagues who have benefited from this party, enormously and abandoned the party.

“Where they are, we know, they are not happy. Some of them are grumbling in silence. Kindly reach out to them and bring them back home.

“We still regard them as our prodigal children. When they come, we will receive them, and they will continue to help to build the party.

“You who had interacted with them in the governors’ forum and others are the best people who can reach out to your colleagues to bring them back home,” he said.

The national chairman described the PDP as the only party truly owned by Nigerians.

“The only party that will not fall apart, no matter who leaves the party is the PDP, because it’s genuinely founded on the people and nobody owns it.

“We all own it. We belong to it. We’ll continue to build it until we get back to power,” he said.

Former governors in attendance were Sule Lamido of Jigawa, Babangida Aliyu of Niger, Ibrahim Idris of Kogi, Emeka Ihedioha of Imo, Liyel Imoke of Cross River and Peter Obi of Anambra.

(NAN)