John Odigie-OyegunThe national leadership of the All Progressives Congress, APC, has dismissed as “childish and laughable” yesterday’s claim by the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, that the governing party is persecuting its officials in order to prepare ground for President Muhammadu Buhari’s second term bid in 2019.
While opting not to join issues with the opposition party, the APC, in a statement issued yesterday by its National Chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, averred that the erstwhile ruling party was paying for its years of impunity.
Earlier, the PDP National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh was quoted to have stated amongst others that “The APC is obviously seeking to destroy the PDP so that it can push through Buhari’s second tenure in 2019 without opposition from the PDP.
“The federal government is persecuting, and not prosecuting, Col. Sambo Dasuki. The APC and its leaders fear that Dasuki, given his vast political and security network, may be harbouring a presidential ambition, more so that
the PDP has zoned its presidential ticket to the north.”
Reacting to this, however, Chief Odigie-Oyegun stressed that the APC cares less about whoever the
PDP picks as its candidate for the 2019 presidential election, stressing that relevant laws in the country clearly stipulates the requirements for persons seeking election into all political
office.
According to him, “The preoccupation of the APC and President Muhammadu Buhari is to deliver on all the
promises made to Nigerians by the party during the 2015 election.
“Looking back at the last seven months, there are clear indicators showing that the APC and the President Buhari administration is on the right track to delivering on its Change Agenda.
“The PDP speaks of a presidential directive to security agencies and judiciary to “coerce” and
“convict” PDP leaders and officials of the immediate-past administration with corruption charges. Clearly such abuse of presidential directives was a concept invented and effectively deployed by the PDP during its defunct 16-year rule. The APC is a law-abiding party and cannot adopt such diabolical concept.
The APC believes strongly in the rule of law, as against the kind of impunity Nigeria witnessed under the PDP for 16 years.
“We assure Nigerians that the PDP conspiracy theories will not distract the President Buhari administration, law enforcement and anti-graft agencies from the successful on-going war against corruption being waged on looters
of our common wealth. The ongoing war against corruption is not selective. Anybody guilty of corrupt practices will face the law,” he said.
The APC Chairman continued that, “The PDP has chosen to blame everyone but itself for the sorry state it finds itself. The PDP should have known that it will pay for its years of impunity, recklessness and shocking mismanagement of the country’s commonwealth. PDP members who are genuinely inspired by the APC-led administration are welcome to the APC fold. It is theirl right to abandon a sinking ship and join one that is smooth-sailing.”
