The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Sunday, June 7, 2015 accused President Muhammadu Buhari of hypocrisy after he visited Niger Republic and Chad – two of the countries he accused former president Goodluck Jonathan of ‘relying’ on to tackle insurgent group, Boko Haram.
Speaking via a statement issued in Abuja, the PDP National Publicity Secretary, Olisa Metuh, said the move smirks of double standards, adding that in the coming days, Nigerians would see more evidence of the insincerity of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who he said rode on blackmail to get to power.
He also lampooned the APC for their outright condemnation of well-meaning Nigerians who have criticised the slow pace of work by the Buhari-led government, adding that it smirks of undemocratic tendencies, capable of destroying the democratic setting established in the country by the PDP for the past 16 years.
He said: “The APC must understand that the hallmark of democracy is freedom of expression and opinion, particularly on governance issues; inalienable rights of all citizens guaranteed by the constitution and which must not be denied them under any guise whatsoever.
“Though we had decided to give Buhari and the ruling party sometime to settle down, indicators show that the APC is not getting its bearing right and the PDP as a party that has nurtured and sustained democracy in the last 16 years, we cannot fold our hands and watch our nation drift towards dangerous undemocratic paths.
“The concern of well-meaning Nigerians is that this may be a pointer to the fact that the APC lacks clear-cut directions on how to govern a nation as complex as Nigeria.
“The negative effect of the glaring political commotion in the APC is compounding President Buhari’s self-confessed nervousness and puzzlement, his flip-flops and worrisome reneging on campaign promises for which Nigerians will continue to hold him accountable.
“Instead of fighting for positions, which betrays their lust, APC leaders should be more concerned with how to help President Buhari, who is still struggling with his ministerial list and basic appointments more than a week after his inauguration.
“They should be more concerned with how to end insurgency by the end of July as promised by President Buhari in his April 2, 2015 CNN interview.
“They should be concerned about how to pay N5,000 each to 25 million poor Nigerians beginning from the end of June; how to bring the naira to the same value with the dollar; provide allowances to the discharged but unemployed youth corps members for 12 months; provide free education and meals for school children among others as they promised during the campaigns.
“We invite the APC to note the concern of Nigerians that the pictures emanating from their camp are not reassuring in this direction,” Metuh concluded.
