The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) General Muhammadu Buhari
declaration that the Federal Government has failed in tackling the
problem of insurgency as lacking in patriotism.
In a statement by Olisa Metuh, National Publicity Secretary, the party said:
“It is unfortunate that General Buhari, being a former head of state, has
continued to play politics with a very serious security challenge which
has claimed the lives of many Nigerians by always trying to use the
pains of the people to score cheap political points at a time all
patriotic Nigerians are joining hands with government to look for
solution.
“Rather than show patriotism by collaborating with the Federal
Government, the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential aspirant
prefers that the nation has no solution until the time he is able to
step in as president with his “magic wand” to end the insurgency.
“This not only exposes a height of insensitivity but also a clear absence
of genuine love and concern for the people. Assuming, without conceding
that he has the solution to the problem, should Buhari as a prominent
citizen not have put the country first before any selfish political
agenda and personal aggrandizement?
“Whereas, the Federal Government has shown incontrovertible commitment to
ending the insurgency by deploying troops and equipping the military,
opposition leaders including General Buhari have continued in their
desperate attempt to sabotage the efforts by making statements that
encourage insurgency and which are capable of demoralizing and dividing
our security agencies.
“Nigerians appreciate the fact that the Federal Government has been able
to sustain the battle to repel the insurgents through the gallant
efforts of our armed forces, who have continued to put their lives on
the line in defence of our nation and her people.
“In the last four years, the Federal Government has deployed huge
budgetary allocations towards the fight against terror. Our military,
which has suffered years of neglect, is being re-equipped, care is being
provided for victims and the displaced while advocacy, consultations as
well as national and international collaborations, have been
strengthened to find lasting solution to the challenge.
“In particular, our President, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, has shown
strength, commitment and character in taking decisions and steps that
are salutary to ending the scourge despite the attempts to distract him
by unpatriotic elements whose agenda is to destabilize and balkanize the
nation as a means to achieve political control. His candor, humility
and strict adherence to rules in the overall effort have been a source
of strength for Nigerians and the principal factor for the sustained
unity and stability of the nation.
“It is against this background that the PDP sees General Buhari’s
declaration and the seeming self-indictment contained in the declaration
as cheap politics, especially considering his antecedents and the
disposition of his party, the APC, in promoting division among Nigerians
and stocking the embers of violence and insurgency through series of
sustained incendiary statements.
“It is on record that in April 2002, preparatory to the 2003 presidential
elections, General Buhari urged that Muslims should vote only for
Muslims. His statement, which targeted at the very heart of our unity
as a nation also sought to promote our nation’s religious fault line as
a basis for electing a President.
“A stunned nation watched General Buhari flag off his campaign in 2011 in
Kaduna with the pen logo of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC)
held like a spear in his hands and during which he told his supporters
to use it (pen) to pluck out the eyes of anybody that tampers with their
votes.
“As if unmoved by the consequences of his utterances in 2011, General
Buhari on May 14, 2012, invoked imagery of bloodshed ahead of 2015
elections while addressing members of his defunct CPC who visited him in
Kaduna when he said “If what happened in 2011 (alleged rigging) should
happen again in 2015, by the grace of God, the dog and the baboon would
be soaked in blood.”
“It is instructive to note that, to General Buhari and the APC, election
is rigged only if the APC loses but free and fair when they win.
“Nigerians may recall that the same General Buhari who, in recent times,
has been criticizing the Federal Government as not doing enough to crush
insurgency had in June 2, 2013 protested military crackdown on the
insurgents. In an interview with LIBERTY FM, he lamented that Boko Haram
members were being killed and their houses demolished unlike the
“special treatment” given to the Niger Delta militants by the Federal
Government.
“Seven days after, the National Publicity Secretary of APC, Alhaji Lai
Mohammed, in the same capacity for the then Action Congress of Nigeria
(ACN), issued a statement condemning the proscription of the Boko Haram
sect as a “violation of the constitution.” The ACN opposed as
offensive, Section 5 (1) of the order, which prescribes a term of
imprisonment of not less than 20 years ‘for any person who knowingly, in
any manner, directly or indirectly, solicits or renders support for the
commission of an act of terrorism or to a terrorist group.”
“We have an opposition party whose leaders tend to celebrate attacks by
insurgents aimed at brutalizing the citizens and embarrassing the nation
and the present administration. When a founding chairman of APC, Chief
Bisi Akande, said a few weeks back in a newspaper interview that the APC
had a solution to Boko Haram but would keep it until they got to power,
Nigerians wondered if there existed certain links that were more than
meet the eyes.
“It is indeed sad that General Buhari, who was once a military governor
of the Northeast, which encompassed Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states, has
failed to use his connections there to assist and bring peace to the
nation, which he desires to rule once more.
“Instead, he chooses to accuse the Federal Government and the military of
a hidden agenda to destroy the North, thereby hampering the efforts of
the military to build relationships and trust in communities affected by
the insurgency. A prominent Nigerian in the mold of General Buhari
should not be playing politics with the destiny of a nation and the
security of Nigerians.
“The PDP wishes to state without any equivocation that General Buhari has
failed to articulate any vision to unite and prosper Nigeria since he
came into politics. He has failed to show any commitment to the Nigerian
project and the advancement of its cause as a nation state; instead, a
sinister and divisive mission robed with an outdated fabled
anti-corruption agenda is all that is being presented.
“Finally, we call on all Nigerians irrespective of their political
leanings to unite behind our military in the war against terror. No
time in the history of our country has there been a greater need than
now for all Nigerians from all the corners of our great nation to act
and display patriotism in actions and deeds. The time to show support
and love for our soldiers and victims of the insurgents is now.
Whenever you see a Nigerian soldier smile at him, tell him well-done and
wish him well.
“A united Nigeria remains our only hope for individual and collective
growth and greatness. We should not allow comments and statements based
on the selfish interests of certain Nigerians to becloud our love for
one another.
“Our President loves a united Nigeria; the leadership of our Party
remains committed to strengthening our unity. We plead with the
opposition to be more patriotic in their words and deeds. TOGETHER WE
CAN ERADICATE INSURGENCY IN OUR BELOVED LAND.”