The Federal Government has condemned the increasingly `unpatriotic and desperate’ opposition politics being played by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar. The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, who issued the condemnation while addressing State House correspondents in Abuja, warned that the PDP and Atiku’s post-election activities could be toxic for the nation’s democracy, if left unchecked; warning that: “Unless they quickly retrace their steps, they may, sooner than later, overreach themselves.”
Political watchers were quick to interpret Lai Mohammed’s statement as a veiled threat to Atiku and the PDP who are challenging President Muhammadu Buhari’s re-election victory at the presidential election petition tribunal where they have also called on the tribunal’s president, Justice Zainab Bulkachuwa to recuse herself over alleged preconceived bias and conflicts of interests. While the tribunal has fixed May 22 to hear Atiku’s application disqualifying Bulkachuwa, Mohammed interpreted the move as an attack on the judiciary, describing such perceived attacks on the final arbiter as the antithesis of earlier claims by Atiku and the PDP that they had clear evidences of electoral fraud against the president.
“Never in the history of politics in Nigeria has an opposition party and its presidential candidate exhibited the kind of desperate tactics being deployed by the duo of the PDP and its flag-bearer, especially since President Muhammadu Buhari overwhelmingly defeated Atiku to win the 2019 presidential election. Either by themselves or via their proxies, the PDP and its presidential candidate are doing everything possible to sabotage the Buhari Administration, generally overheat the polity and make Nigeria seemingly ungovernable, especially through their public utterances and their poorly-thought-out press releases before and after the 2019 general elections.
The minister also noted that the PDP had taken its desperation to a new level by attacking the judiciary, “an action many see as indicating a reversal of the party’s hitherto self-assured stance that it has a solid case against the election of the President. The minister described the actions of the PDP and its presidential candidate as unfashionable, more so that they have the opportunity of seeking a redress in the court as the president did three times. He further threatened that a situation where the opposition is seeking a redress in court and yet resorting to what he termed self-help was unacceptable, describing the alleged attacks on the judiciary as anti-democratic and unconscionable acts.
“And either by coincidence or orchestration, a “faceless group” emerges from nowhere calling for an overthrow of a democratically-elected government, a totally egregious act of treason,” alleging that the decision of Atiku to associate himself with anti-democratic forces and engage in frivolous expressions beats the imagination. “It beggars belief that a candidate who prides himself as a democrat can so allow desperation to becloud his sense of propriety to such an extent that he will be associating with anti-democratic forces or making inflammatory statements.
According to the minister, for acclaimed democrats, there are acceptable channels of seeking redress after an election defeat. He noted that even President Buhari himself went to court three times to challenge election results. “What is not acceptable is to either resort to self-help after an election defeat, or to embark on a journey of subterfuge and sabotage while also mounting a legal challenge or pretending to do so. Worst still, painting the judiciary bad, for whatever reason, is anti-democratic and unconscionable.’’ The minister, therefore, urged the main opposition party to stop beating the drums of war but to concentrate on the “legal challenge by its candidate against the election of President Buhari if indeed they have any faith in the country’s judiciary.” He also called on the opposition to desist from unnecessarily overheating the polity.
In a swift reaction, the PDP described the allegations by the federal government as irresponsible, saying the administration should stop inventing excuses and making frivolous allegations of treason for its mass failures. The party in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, stressed that the expectation of Nigerians is for the Buhari presidency to live up to the demands of his office instead of blaming the PDP for its self-inflicted woes.
It said: “Alhaji Lai Mohammed has once again veered off issues of governance and dwelt on hauling insults, misplaced accusations and threats against our party and our presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar.” It said the minister’s tone betrayed the frustration of a failed administration seeking excuses and scapegoats, instead of accepting its failures and self-inflicted woes.
According to the PDP: “It is equally undisputable that the All Progressives Congress (APC), within a period of four years, has wrecked our democratic structures, relegated and harassed judicial officers, disregarded our laws and judicial pronouncements, divided our people and practically brought our nation to its knees only for them to now turn to look for scapegoats where there are none. “It is, therefore, unfortunate that the Minister of Information and Culture could suddenly take recourse to making irresponsible allegations against the PDP and our presidential candidate instead of accepting their failures.”
The main opposition party said it is incontrovertible that the PDP, as a highly responsible political party, committed to the unity and stability of the nation, nurtured the country’s democracy for 16 years and has continued to express its full respect for every arm of government, including the judiciary. The PDP said it is instructive to state that, in the course of serving the nation for 16 years, the party was never known for intimidating and harassing judicial officers at any level.
It noted that as a party, the PDP considers it awkward for the APC and its government, under whose only four-year tenure, the judiciary has been thoroughly embarrassed, to make frivolous allegations against the party and its presidential candidate.
