The All Progressives Congress, APC, has cautioned the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, against accusing the ruling party over Monday’s attack on the opposition’s campaign rally in Kaduna State, saying the violence was self-inflicted.
According to APC, PDP had contracted some political merchants to help it rent a crowd for the rally, but the merchants absconded with the funds meant to pay the hired crowd.
Felix Morka, the APC national publicity secretary, in a statement on Wednesday, October 19, 2022, said while the “ugly event was wrong,” it was “regrettably, self-inflicted.”
APC said it abhors and condemns any and all forms of violence and interference in the activities or events of any political party.
“Every party is entitled to conduct their legitimate activities in peace and security. And every party has a right to equal protection of the law. Perpetrators of disruptive and other acts of violence must be brought to justice.
“However, the PDP has no one but itself to blame for the violent incident at its rally in Kaduna.
“The incident was simply a matter of a rented crowd that went irate when the party’s rent-a-crowd managers disappeared with funds meant to pay for the rented crowd,” said Morka.
He said rather than hold its head down in shame for the poor and distasteful showing at its Kaduna rally, the PDP seeks to scapegoat the APC.
“To be clear, the APC has no hand in the attack as irresponsibly alleged by the PDP. We have no reason to be perturbed by the rally.
“As Africa’s largest political party, bolstered by the remarkable accomplishments of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration, with a vibrant future led by our visionary presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, we cannot, in any way, be unnerved by any political party or presidential candidate.
“Certainly not by the PDP, a party in tatters and at war with itself.
“If anything, it was the PDP that scheduled and conducted its rally in Kaduna on the same day that our candidate was scheduled to make an appearance at the Arewa Dialogue before which the PDP candidate made an appearance the Saturday prior.
“A mature and well-governed campaign would have avoided that apparent conflict of having two major events take place in the same city on the same day.
“Having made their pitch at the dialogue, it was only fair that our candidate be allowed to do the same. But such civil gesture is uncharacteristic of the PDP.
‘Our worth’
“Given the credible, free, and fair elections that the APC-led administration superintended in Anambra, Ekiti, and Osun states, there is no iota of doubt that our party remains committed to the highest levels of civility, transparency, and respect for the rule of law in its political engagements.
“That this government also midwifed the massive reform of the Electoral Act, and introduced the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, BVAS, speak volume to its commitment to democratic consolidation in our country.
“We urge security agencies to probe the unfortunate Kaduna incident with a view to unmasking and prosecuting the culprits behind it.
“It is imperative that political parties eschew violence and play strictly by the rules of engagement, going forward.
“We enjoin all parties and candidates to subscribe to issue-based campaigns and observe applicable ethical standards and best practices.
“We owe Nigerians a duty to ensure a violence-free and peaceful electioneering process ahead of the 2023 general election,” the APC added.
Source: Vanguard
