The Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP in Cross River State, Venatius Ikem Esq, has expressed regret over the party’s failure to win the 2023 governorship election, attributing it to internal conflicts and disunity.

Ikem revealed this during the PDP’s stakeholders meeting which took place at the Metropolitan Hotel, Calabar, on Sunday.

According to him, the party went into the election with a divided house, paving the way for the loss it suffered in the election, including the loss in key positions.

He said, “We went into an election with a divided house, and a divided house can not stand. As a party, we’ve enjoyed unprecedented success and we took that for granted

“This party remains strong at the grassroots. I take responsibility for the outcome of the last election and the way things turned out.

“We’re going back to rejig our party. We are going to put things in place. I am not proud to be a chairman who lost elections in the state, but I am proud that I come from a zone where we did a bit differently.

“Let’s look beyond personal interests, there are challenges we need to overcome. We need to reason with one another. There’s still enthusiasm for the PDP and we will definitely bounce back.”

Senator Jarigbe Jarigbe, representing Cross River North senatorial district, commended party stakeholders for their unwavering support despite challenging circumstances.

Jarigbe reiterated that the ruling All Progressives Congress was fallible, emphasizing the need for the PDP to stay resolute and capitalize on the APC’s errors.

He said, “I appreciate the enthusiasm of members of the party. I want to encourage all of us, the only constant thing is change.

The APC took over due to the mistakes that we made. I do not think that the APC is infallible. The APC will make the same mistakes and pave the way for us to take over.”

In his address, Prof. Sandy Onor, the PDP governorship candidate in the 2023 election, encouraged party members not to be discouraged by the setbacks in the previous governorship election.

He assured them that the party would definitely recover and regain strength.