The Peoples Democratic Party has said that President Muhammadu Buhari is ruling with abuse of power that has led to the suppression of the voice of Nigerians.
In a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, on Saturday, PDP said “Nigeria has come to a point where citizens, irrespective of political affiliations, can no longer freely express their views. We have fast descended from an environment of personal freedom and rule of law to an environment of muffled voices and suppression.
“Whereas the PDP totally supports the fight against corruption, while reposing confidence in the judiciary to protect and preserve its sanctity, we note with grave concern, the politically induced controversies within the judiciary, as a result of the part being played by agents of the executive, especially the question of due process with respect to the roles statutorily vested on the person of an Attorney-General, who is yet to be appointed, regarding proceedings in the Code of Conduct Tribunal.
“We note this dangerous trend because the Presidency and the APC have not hidden their aversion to the election of Senators Bukola Saraki and Ike Ekweremadu as Senate President and Deputy Senate President respectively, even as the fact of various moves to oust them from office, including the recent unsubstantiated allegations of forgery and harassments by the federal controlled security agencies are in the public domain.
“Also, similar machineries have been activated for possible forceful takeover of PDP states, a plot which played out in the recent act of terrorism against democracy, in the invasion of Akwa-Ibom state government house by the Department of State Services (DSS), under the direct instructions from the Presidency.
“We also recall July reprehensible invasion and sealing of Rivers local councils by the Police, who also barred members of caretaker committees that were duly appointed by the state government to take charge of the councils.
“The erosion of personal freedom of citizen also came to public glare in the invasion of the home of the former National Security Adviser (NSA), Col. Sambo Dasuki, against constitutionally guaranteed fundamental rights and the rule of law.
“Furthermore, Nigerians are witness to the undue interferences of the Department of State Services in the activities of election tribunals in PDP controlled states of Rivers, Akwa-Ibom, Delta, Abia, Taraba and others where electoral officers are being harassed, intimidated and detained, ostensibly to influence judgments against the PDP.
“We recall the show of intolerance in the venom and disparagement with which the APC-led administration in August, attacked our highly revered national leaders in the National Peace Committee, which has as members, former Head of State, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar, the Sultan of Sokoto, His Eminence, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar, respected clerics; Archbishop John Onaiyekan and Bishop Matthew Hassan Kuka, retired justices of superior records, as well as other highly respected patriotic Nigerians, for daring to counsel Buhari’s government on some observed undemocratic tendencies and processes.
“It is therefore a mockery of reasoning for President Buhari to use choice words to condemn the coup in Burkina Faso whilst his government engages in brazen contravention of our own constitution, a development that is clearly derailing Nigeria from the path of order, democracy and constitutionalism.
“It is hence only appropriate that the President is called upon to focus on restoring proper democracy in Nigeria and end this drift towards dictatorship under the “new Sheriff’, an ominous undemocratic nomenclature introduced into our political space by the Presidency.”
