PDP Coup Scare is a Trojan Horse

The general situation in the country is that everything is at a standstill. It is no longer a ¡go-slow¢ issue. Governance is zero. To be precise, the government is retrogressing. Prices are skyrocketing on a daily basis. There is general insecurity in the land. Part of the country had just been ceded and the Cameroon is harassing parts of Taraba State. They have become Oliver Twist. They are not satisfied with Bakassi. They want Mambila and even more. The Niger Delta is not at peace and hence revenue from the oil sector is dwindling. The government is shopping for new candidates for ministerial appointment. Siemens, a company blacklisted some months ago has just been called to come and give us light. The list is endless. These are not signs of a peaceful society. In other parts of the land, one of the above mentioned scenarios is enough to destabilize the country and hence the intervention of the military.

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If, for the prevention of the worst, a section of the society is calling for something urgent to be done to maintain peace and stability, can that amount to treasonable felony? I hope these guys in the so called the largest party in Africa know what they are doing. Coup d¢etat is not an issue to be toyed with. You don¢t just wake up in the morning and open your mouth as wide as you can and say someone is planning to take over the government. When a man can not keep his house in order, is it right for the man to point accusing fingers to his neighbour because he i.e. his neighbour sees his weakness?

The right thing should be done. The military and the State Security Service should demand further explanation from the PDP about the coup. No one is praying for a coup at this time of our democratic journey. Therefore, if the PDP has superior information of a coup in the offing, it should alert the appropriate quarters instead of raising unnecessary alarm. In the event that PDP fails to give reasonable evidence, they must tender an unreserved apology to all the good citizens of the country for insulting our sensibilities.

Does the mere call for an ING amount to coup plotting? This call had been made severally in the past. During the Babangida era, when he took the country to a standstill he was forced to set up the ING. At a time, Abacha was called upon to set up an ING. Obasanjo, after his farce called election 2007 was also called upon to set up an ING. No one insinuated coup all these times. The call for an ING is just a way forward whenever we are forced into a cul-de-sac. It is a clarion call by well meaning Nigerians.

Nigerians should be wary of the government. When the government is about to start harassing innocent citizens, they try to create the atmosphere to justify the ignoble move. Abacha was busy chasing NADECO members on the premise that they were planning to destabilize his government. This is an old trick. It is diversionary and unsubstantiated. It won¢t work. PDP should think of something better. This government may soon declare Buhari, Atiku and their core supporters wanted for crime against the nation. Treasonable felony indeed!

By Alhaji Abdallah Mailafia Sha'ibu

[abdallahlafia@yahoo.com]

No 8A Tudun Wada Street

Lafia Nasarawa State