The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), on Wednesday, declared what it called President Muhammadu Buhari’s resort to religious coloration and classification of wanton killings in the country by insurgents, as “totally horrendous, unpresidential, scandalous, discriminatory, divisive and a huge spat on the grave of the victims.”
PDP described as highly insensitive that Buhari could attempt to rationalize the failure of his administration to end
insurgency by stating that 90 percent of those killed by terrorists are members of a particular religion.
Buhari, speaking on the death of the chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in Michika, Adamawa, Lawan Andimi, claimed the insurgents are using religion to divide Nigerians.
However, a statement by PDP’s spokesperson, Kola Ologbondiyan noted that Nigerians have lost confidence in Buhari’s presidency.
According to Ologbondiyan: “PDP, as a Pan Nigerian political party, holds without any equivocation, that the killing of any compatriot, anywhere by terrorists or bandits, irrespective of religion, ethnicity or class, can never be rationalized under any guise whatsoever.
“Mr. President’s disturbing statement shows that the Buhari Presidency and the All Progressives Congress (APC) attach no value to the lives of Nigerians as well as further exposes their manifest lack of capacity and commitment to effectively tackle the worsened security situation under President Buhari’s watch.
“Our party holds that for President Buhari, a commander in chief, who promised to fight from the fronts and now holds all the paraphernalia of power; and on whose shoulders the security of the nation rests, to make such a statement leaves no one in doubt that the Buhari Presidency has reached its wits end, exhausted its propaganda and has no solutions to offer.”
PDP stated that it was instructive for the Buhari Presidency to note that rather than engaging in what it termed “lame attempt at rationalizing failure,” the expectation of Nigerians was for it to take decisive steps, track down and vanquish
terrorists, who resurged in the country after the President took over as Commander-in-Chief.
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“More distressing is that Mr. President’s divisive comment is coming at a time when all well-meaning Nigerians, irrespective of religion, partisan and sectional interests, are rallying together following calls by patriotic individuals and groups, particularly the PDP, to find solution for the worsened security challenges under the APC administration
“President Buhari and the APC must know that every life is precious, irrespective of religion, and that this obnoxious body count as rationalization for failure is completely unacceptable.
“PDP notes that with such dismal attitude Nigerians have lost all confidence in the commitment of the APC administration to find solution to security challenges under its watch,” the statement added.
NAN