PDP seals deal with 39 parties
Wammako hits Tambuwal
Kwara PDP chief joins APC
President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday referred to defectors from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as “bad eggs.”
He said as the 2019 elections approach, “God will continue to fish out the bad eggs among us.”
He reiterated his resolve to ensure that nobody is allowed to loot the treasury.
Said Buhari: “What I will never exhibit is to allow selfish politicians loot public treasury and allow the masses be cheated.
“All what we are doing is in the interest of the people and our dear country.
“I pray to God to expose sycophants that are still within our party, who are bent on trying to loot our resources.”
APC National Chairman Adams Oshiomhole said the defectors were afraid of the government’s anti-corruption war, adding that many of the looters of the treasury during the 16 years of the PDP administrations would end up in jail.
They spoke in Bauchi yesterday while campaigning for the APC candidate in the August 11 Bauchi South senatorial by-election.
The seat became vacant following the death of Senator Ali Wakili. The APC candidate is Hon. Gumau Lawal Yahaya.
The President urged party faithful not to be perturbed by the defections.
Senate President Bukola Saraki and three governors – Aminu Tambuwal (Sokoto), Samuel Ortom (Benue) and Ahmed Abdulfattah (Kwara) led the defectors.
Buhari said: “The work we are doing is because of God, our country and you. I want to inform you that with the knowledge we have garnered over the years, we won’t allow you to be cheated.
“Like we promised, what will determine a good future for the country are security, strong economy and to stop corruption.
“We campaigned on these things, you voted for us and we will never forget.”
“The President got a thunderous applause from party supporters at the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa Stadium, Bauchi, venue of the rally.
Buhari endorsed the candidate saying: “We have confidence in him and we trust him.”
He praised the crowd for defying the downpour to turn out in large numbers for the rally.
Lambasting the defectors, Oshiomhole said:
“This is a clear indication that some of them (defectors) have been sharing the country’s resources for 16 years, but failed to do that in the last three years.
“ Most of them are afraid of the anti-corruption crusade being waged by this administration, and are sure that most of them will find themselves behind bars.
“There is no going back on sending those found wanting to jail, no matter how highly placed they are.
“We are happy over such defection because we are fed up with the nefarious activities being perpetrated by them.”
Bauchi State Governor Muhammed Abubakar blamed members of the National Assembly for the country’s under-development, adding that he was happy that “most of them are leaving our party”.
He called on Bauchi South Senatorial District to vote for the APC candidate.
The APC’s state chairman, Alhaji Uba Nana, said defections had not affected the party in the state.
He said instead of members defecting to other parties, the APC in the state had witnessed a mass influx of people from other parties.
The chairman said 25 other political parties in the state had formed an alliance with the APC to enable the party emerge victorious in the by-election.
Governors Simon Lalong (Plateau), Abdulahi Ganduje (Kano) and Rochas Okorocha (Imo) were at the rally.
House of Representatives Speaker Yakubu Dogara, who hails from the senatorial district, did not attend the rally. He is among members of the APC believed to be on their way to the PDP.
Also yesterday, the PDP National Executive Commmittee (NEC) met in Abuja.
The meeting formally received Senate President Bukola Saraki, Benue State Governor Samuel Ortom and Sokoto State Governor Aminu Tambuwal – who just defected – to the opposition party.
Saraki told the meeting: “I am happy to see some of my colleagues here who have given me faith in this country, who have made me believe there are still men of character, that there are still men who are still ready to make sacrifices for this country.”
Describing Saraki as key in the renewed struggle to “free” Nigeria, Secondus praised the defectors, saying history would be fair to them.
He said: “The bold steps you took to return to the party where you truly belong, is a sacrifice not for yourself but for Nigeria and history will be fair to you.
“Today is the beginning of the great journey to freedom, the great journey to free our people and rescue this country from the damage done to it by the APC in the last three years”.
Senator Aliyu Wamakko faulted Tambuwal’s defection, saying he made “the worst decision in his life.”
He said Sokoto State would remain an All Progressives Congress (APC) state in spite of the governor’s exit.
In Abuja, the PDP sealed its alliance with a coalition of 39 political parties to fight the ruling APC.
Secondus said it was time for the coalition to rescue Nigeria from the “misgovernance,” which he said is typified by senseless killing of innocent Nigerians and harassment of opposition elements.
A National Executive Committee ( NEC) member of the PDP from Kwara state, Hon. Ahmed Yinka Aluko, has defectedto the All Progressive Congress( APC).
Aluko, who was the deputy governorship candidate in the 2015 elections resigned his elective position and membership of PDP during the party’ s NEC meeting yesterday.
The former Special Adviser on Security matters in Kwara State accused the opposition of impunity and undemocratic practices.
Aluko said he was irked by the decision of PDP National leadership to hand over the structure to Senate President Bukola Saraki.
He said: ” It is therefore shocking that the party at the national level has resolved to hand over the party structures and all electable positions to defectors without any regards for those who stood by the party and built it into a strong winning machine in Kwara. It is even more shocking that as the only national officer from Kwara state I was not consulted”.
The National Chairman of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Chief Olu Falae said: “We must be wary of those who will come to scatter us by trying to sow seeds of discord, spread fake news and adopt divisible measures to achieve their sinister motive”, Falae added
Culled from TheNation
