Nigeria’s governing party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), has hit back at the leadership of opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) with a bang in reply to what describes as its recent utterances against the party and its President Muhammadu Buhari-led government.
The APC, in a statement by its Deputy National Publicity Secretary Yekini Nabena sent to The DEFENDER, said under Chief Uche Secondus, opposition has taken flight as, according to him, the PDP keeps crumbling under his leadership.
Reacting to recent comments by Secondus on President Muhammadu Buhari and the All Progressives Congress (APC) decision to defend and support free, fair elections, particularly the 2019 elections as opposed to previous PDP militarized elections, the APC calls on Secondus to focus on the PDP which has become shockingly rudderless under his watch.
“Under Secondus, the PDP has never had it this bad with the opposition Party’s stakeholders detached from the party activities as was witnessed with notable PDP leaders boycotting the Party’s 2019 presidential campaigns and the recent Bayelsa State Governorship bribe-for-ticket scandal that indicted Secondus.
“Little wonder, the recent months have witnessed many PDP members resign their membership due to Secondus activities which has brought the PDP to its knees.
“The PDP under Secondus is in willful denial of the obvious that under the President Muhammadu Buhari-led APC administration, free, fair and credible elections are the new normal. Voting power is fast returning to the people and the era of stolen and procured votes is fast-fading.
“We reiterate that President Buhari’s declaration that the APC could have used the military and other security services to overrun opposition states in the 2019 general election but chose free, fair elections is a solid pointer and demonstrates our proven democratic and progressive credentials.
“Why will the PDP under Secondus not support efforts to ensure the independence of our state institutions such as the Judiciary, INEC and our security services and ultimately deepen our democracy and improve our electioneering system?
“We call on progressive partisans, particularly in the PDP not to sink with the opposition party which has become clearly disillusioned under Secondus.
“The Governor Mai Mala Buni-led APC Caretaker/Extra-Ordinary National Convention Planning Committee (CENCPC) has created a healthy and progressive political environment in the APC and is entrenching internal democracy which is geared towards electing into public offices patriotic countrymen who will put the people first and contribute to achieving the Nigeria we all desire and deserve, a party which defends that fact that power belongs to the people and during elections, votes must count.
“The APC welcomes all Progressives,” Nabena said in the statement he issued at the APC National Secretariat Abuja, on Monday.
