The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Friday berated President Muhammadu Buhari and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) over neglecting the realities provoking mass protests in the country and shifting blames of the last Monday revolutionary protest across the country to the PDP presidential candidate in the 2019 election, Atiku Abubakar.
PDP National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, in a statement in Abuja protested: “the attention of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has been drawn to yet another pitiable and disgraceful press statement by the discomfited All Progressives Congress (APC) wherein it once again resorted to fabrications, insults and attempts to invent allegations against the peoples’ candidate, Atiku Abubakar.”
Thet National publicity Secretary declared: “Our party, for the umpteenth time, urges the Buhari Presidency and the APC to leave Atiku Abubakar alone and face their self-inflicted resentment from Nigerians by answering for their misrule for which compatriots have now become agitated on all fronts.”
The PDP decried that it is despicable that the Buhari Presidency and the APC have not yet realized that Nigerians are aware that since their defence fell apart at the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal, they have become nervous and desperate to invent any means to frame and drag down Atiku Abubakar; a plot that has already failed.
“It is, indeed, not surprising that the APC, in its desperation, is now playing opposition, which is a role fitting of it, being that it does not have the mandate of the people; the very reason it cannot command the respect, loyalty and support of the citizens in the midst of its misrule,” the party stated.
The PDP insisted that Atiku Abubakar, as a leader of choice, has never faltered in displaying the highest sense of patriotism, restrain and decorum in his positions on national issues and, standing with overwhelming majority of Nigerians, cannot be intimidated or distracted from pursing the retrieval of his stolen Presidential mandate at the tribunal.
“Instead of fixating on Atiku, the APC should help the Commander-in-Chief to provide answers for escalated insecurity in our country under his watch; with insurgents, marauders, bandits and kidnappers holding our nation hostage and turning her into a killing field and large funeral palour in the last four years.
“Furthermore, the APC should rather be helping President Buhari to answer Nigerians on how his administration wrecked our once robust economy, entrenched corruption, frittered trillions of naira, turned our nation into world poverty capital and foisted joblessness, acute hunger and starvation; human right abuses and downright impunity, which have spurred resentment to the extent that Nigerians are now desperate to take their destinies in the hands with many resorting to suicide and slavery missions abroad.
“Moreover, the APC should look inwards, do some soul searching and face the miseries it sired instead of seeking for a scapegoat where there is none.
“Let it, therefore, be known to the APC and the Buhari Presidency that the PDP and Nigerians stand with Atiku Abubakar in the collective national determination to retrieve our stolen presidential mandate at the court and we are confident that justice for the people will prevail at the end of the day,” the statement read.