OK Movement rejects merger into NDC

Says cooperation with party does not erase its identity By Henry Umoru ABUJA — The OK Movement, a political platform supporting the joint ticket of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential candidate, Peter Obi, and his running mate, Rabiu Kwankwaso, has rejected any plan to merge or subsume the movement into the party. The movement said its cooperation and political alignment with the NDC did not amount to organisational subordination, insisting that it remained an independent political organisation with its own structures and internal administration. In a statement on Wednesday, National Director-General of the OK Movement, Hon. John Ozyl Ughulu, said the movement was not a support group created as an appendage of any political party or another organisation.

He said its national, state, local government and ward structures remained the responsibility of the movement and would not be transferred to the management of the NDC or any other organisation. Ughulu said the OK Movement comprised members drawn from different political parties who shared a common commitment to the political aspirations of Obi and Kwankwaso. He said the movement had the organisational right to establish its own campaign and mobilisation structures in support of the candidates, adding that it was not aware of any provision of the NDC constitution that expressly prohibited such arrangements. According to him, the movement had developed structures across the country through the commitment and participation of its members and coordinators. “Our position is therefore clear: The OK Movement remains an independent organisation. Its existence and internal administration are not subject to the internal management of the NDC Party,” he said. Ughulu said the movement recognised the constitutional…