Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has said it will no longer stomach the continued unlawful use of state apparatus of power by the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led federal government to harass its elected officials at any level across the country.
The party said the APC-led government last Friday crossed the line by
unleashing the Department of State Security (DSS), now under the direct
command of APC member, Alhaji Lawal Daura, to invade and occupy the Akwa
Ibom State Government House, Uyo, in violation of the constitutional
immunity of the government house.
The National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Chief Olisa Metuh, in a
statement yesterday cautioned that the invasion and other flagrant abuse
of power by the APC-led federal government are clear recipes for
constitutional crisis, civil unrest and avoidable anarchy in the land,
and called on Nigerians and the international community to take copious
note of this.
The party said its investigations had shown that the DSS acted on the
express orders from the presidency, which has been in a desperate bid to
destabilise and forcefully take over Akwa Ibom and other PDP states.
“We have information that the DSS, acting on the instructions of the
presidency, occupied Akwa Ibom State Government House, ransacking guest
houses for no just cause.
“If such terror can be unleashed on a state government, one can only
imagine the fate of regular citizens in the hands of this administration
that has continued to show unparalleled disdain for constitutional
order, with heinous penchant for oppression.
“We have also been made aware of plans by the APC government to stage
similar invasions and unlawful assaults on other PDP states, including
Rivers, Delta, Abia and Taraba, where electoral officers are already
being hounded and harassed by the DSS, who are also directly interfering
in the activities of the election tribunals, in furtherance of APC’s
desperation to take over these states.
“The PDP recalls similar action by the APC controlled police, which in
July, sealed local councils in Rivers State and barred caretaker
committees lawfully appointed by the state government from taking charge
of the councils.
“We wish to restate that the PDP lost a general election and not a war.
PDP states are not occupied territories but part of the Nigerian
nation; its members are not prisoners of war, but free citizens in a
democratic state.
“We invite Nigerians and the international community to note that never
in the history of our democracy have we witnessed such a divisive
government, whose actions and constitutional violations have so
polarized the polity along its fault lines, while undermining national
unity and cohesion, a development that spells doom for our democracy, if
left unchecked.
“Finally, we wish to state categorically that as citizens of this
country, we can no longer continue to stomach such brazen attacks on our
members and elected officials. The PDP will therefore hold several
leadership and stakeholders meetings to come up with its response to
this barefaced assault on our democracy. Enough is enough,” the party
stated.
0 comments:
Post a Comment