- APC Hits Back: Engage Our Government On Good Governance, Not Idle Talk
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has been mocking the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) saying that the bitter in-fighting and hostilities in the Presidency and the party were the consequences of a stolen mandate.
According to the PDP, the mandate was stolen from its presidential candidate in the February 23 elections, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar.
In a statement on Saturday by the spokesman for the PDP, Kola Ologbondiyan, the PDP said the vicious fight for positions as ‘booty’ of a stolen mandate has further exposed the APC and the cabal in the Buhari Presidency as power mongers who are only interested in power grabbing, treasury looting and plundering of national patrimony and not in the welfare of Nigerians.
The statement said, “In the past few days, Nigerians painfully watched a reality show of the fate that had befallen them in the past four years, as persons close to the President openly declared that a cabal has been running the affairs of our nation.
“Nigerians watched as a faction within the power-grabbing APC, in a loud protest in our nation’s seat of power, Abuja, earlier in the week, listed the Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari, Mr. President’s cousin, Mamman Daura and his long-standing friend, Isa Funtua as members of the said cabal that have appropriated the Presidency and held President Buhari hostage.
“In a counter-protest, the supporters of the cabal had also accused a prominent APC governor of a North West state and his ‘brother’, who is a prominent former minister and former governor of a South-south state, as those fanning the embers of discord in the Presidential Villa to achieve their desperate ambition for power in 2023.
“The despicable scenario is a pointer to the disposition of the APC, as a sanctuary of power mongers and looters, as well as accounts for the unpardonable selfish reason the APC and President Buhari’s handlers rigged the Presidential election.
“Moreover, this shameful in-fighting, dragged to the streets, is a further confirmation of President Buhari’s incompetence and leadership failure, which is directly responsible for the painful economic and security situation which our nation has been sunk in the last four years”.
The PDP noted that the harsh reality is that, with the situation at hand, there is no hope in sight for the nation under the APC and the Buhari Presidency.
“Nevertheless, while the PDP stands with millions of Nigerians in the determination to retrieve our stolen mandate at the appropriate judicial panels, our party finds it ludicrous that in the face of herculean challenges confronting us as a nation, the concern of the APC and Buhari Presidency is the sharing of ill-gotten electoral booty”, the statement added.
However, in a swift response on Saturday evening, the ruling All Progressives Congress asked the opposition PDP to engage it on good governance and not ‘idle talk’.
Said APC in a statement from the office of its spokesman, Mallam Lanre Issa-onilu “it is now clear that the rejected party has again resumed its idle chatter and specious remarks. How long will it take PDP to learn proper opposition politics?
“PDP’s allegation of ‘infighting’ within the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Presidency over appointments is the latest of shameful interventions of PDP in our nation’s affairs.
“The party that was sent into a state of shock following the outcome of the National Assembly election is now accusing APC of infighting. The accusation is coming from the PDP that failed to rally its members to support its own candidates for principal offices at the National Assembly.
“Perhaps, to the delusional PDP, it is a sign of division within our rank to successfully mobilize our members behind our candidates for the National Assembly election. In other words, PDP had proved ultimate unity within its rank with several of its members disregarding the directive to vote for its adopted candidates. Here you have a party wallowing in denial.
“As contained in PDP’s latest statement, odious practices like looting, booty sharing and power-grabbing are not practices that the APC wishes to continue from the wasted PDP years. Nigerians voted against these devious practices of PDP in 2015 and 2019 and opted for Change, which APC represents. We therefore call on the PDP to do better as opposition by engaging our party on issues of good governance and matters that would better the lives of the people. This is the least Nigerians expect from the main opposition party.
“While the APC does not owe the PDP any explanation of the modalities for appointments, we assure Nigerians that the President Muhammadu Buhari administration would always appoint deserving individuals who share our progressive ideals and Change Agenda into positions.”
Packaged by Alice Egbedele and Hazeez Ayansola
