By Crystal Nwakanma
Former Deputy National Chairman of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olabode Ibiyinka George has described Nigeria under the leadership of the All Progressive Congress (APC) as being now in Intensive Care Unit.
He said this on Thursday in a press conference to mark his 79th birthday: “Categorically from my own personal perception of our country, Nigeria is already in the political ICU(intensive care unit. That is where we are. And the only thing that can make us survive is prayer. Prayer not of power. I want to hit hit it the way it is. know me.
“Every Nigerian is created in the image of the almighty God. Nobody, nobody is bigger than anybody else. We are all created by the same God. So I want you to please listen to my story because it’s coming from my heart and I am not afraid to tell the truth to power.”
He expressed gratitude to God, Nigeria, and the PDP for his life, education, military training, and political opportunities as he turned 79.
“As I clock 79 years today, I want to use this opportunity to thank God for creating me in His own Image on November 21, 1945, to thank Nigeria for giving me the desired education, exposure, military training and to also express my appreciation to our great party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), for giving me the platform to operate politically at state and national levels since 1998 when we formed this great party.”
Chief George decried the APC’s poor governance, citing economic hardships like the falling naira and unaffordable fuel prices even as he highlighted APC’s corrupt strategy to dominate states, referring to the party’s actions in Edo, Ondo, and other states as alarming.
He said: “We have seen how the APC-led presidency has continued to destroy the economy and burning the bridge that binds us together since 2015. Naira is falling everyday like a badly arranged pack of cards. A litre of fuel is now beyond the reach of the poor.
“PDP was in power for 16 years and it was not as bad as this. APC has been in power for nine years and look at the mess in the country.
“The National Chairman of APC, Abdullahi Ganduje, has threatened to capture all states in Nigeria. We saw what they did in Edo on September 21. The same ‘capture instrumentality’ was deployed in Ondo on November 16. Ganduje is planning to deploy same strategy in Osun and Anambra before the 2027 general elections.
“He did not say APC would ‘win’ these states but ‘capture’. Some of our party members are hailing him and these disloyal characters are still members of our party.
He urged PDP members to prioritize unity, equity, fairness, and justice to strengthen the party and avoid defeat in the 2027 elections.
He said: “A divided house can never be united. You cannot sleep soundly when you have snakes in your bedroom. That is exactly the situation in PDP today. “Nigerians are angry and hungry. Instead of telling the APC the truth, some divisive, arrogant and haughty members are busy romancing the ruling party. And they are quick to refer to themselves as elder statesmen. Statesmen how? From where to where? Are they not shameless?
“Instead of instigating crisis in our party, why are they not bold enough to defect to APC? Do they fear God at all?
“I reiterate my solidarity to the tenets of our party constitution and we should not allow the collective unity of this party to be fragmented. How we collectively address the issues at stake will be a major determinant of the fate of this party in months and years to come.
“It is our determination to ensure that the PDP returns to the Presidential Villa in Abuja on May 29, 2027 but, we can only go back to Aso Rock if we are united, not divided.
“I spent 10 years as a top official of the National Working Committee (NWC) of our party, so I know how the system works. No member is big enough to hold the party to ransom. Never.”