APC Accuses Jonathan of Moving Nigeria Back To Abacha Era

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has urged the Jonathan administration
not to take Nigeria back to the dreaded and calamitous days of the late
Gen. Sani Abacha, when perceived opponents of the government were targets
of rampaging murderous gangs and Nigeria was turned to a pariah nation
through unbridled human rights abuses.
In a statement issued in Osogbo on Friday by its Interim National
Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party expressed serious
concern over the allegations that the Jonathan administration is training
snipers at the same facility where the Abacha killer squad was trained;
talks of abuse and misuse of the military and other security apparatus for
personal and political interest as well as the reported placing of 1,000
people under a ‘political watch-list’
It said the party is constrained to take the allegations very seriously
because it emanated from no less a personality than former President
Olusegun Obasanjo, in an open letter he wrote to his fellow party man,
President Jonathan, which has now been widely circulated in the
traditional and Social Media..
”All Nigerians must be worried by these weighty allegations, coming less
than 15 years after the long-suffering people had collectively vowed
‘never again’ to a regime like Abacha’s that sent many innocent souls to
their early graves and dispatched many citizens into forced exile for
merely holding views that were opposed to that of the late dictator’s
government.
”We are therefore compelled to call on President Jonathan to urgently
address these allegations, which have already sent jitters down the spines
of Nigerians, especially those who hold views that are diametrically
opposed to the administration’s. The allegations cannot and must not be
swept under the carpet, otherwise Nigerians will know who to hold
responsible if perceived opponents of the administration come to any
harm,” APC said.
The party however expressed total satisfaction that more and more people
within the ruling PDP are now coming to terms with the real dangers facing
the country under their party which, despite being in power at the centre
since Nigeria’s return to democratic rule in 1999, has only succeeded in
putting the country in reverse gear and is now threatening its fledgling
democracy, following its (PDP’s) implosion.
”We are not concerned by the dirty politics in the PDP and the glaring
fact that the behemoth is sinking fast. What bothers us is the impact that
the death throes of this rudderless party will have on our fragile polity.
”We in the opposition have shouted ourselves hoarse about the failings of
the successive PDP administrations, especially the Jonathan government, in
critical sectors of the economy, in particular the worsening unemployment
that has put the nation on tenterhooks
”We have said the Boko Haram crisis cannot be resolved by military
onslaught alone and that it must be tackled from its roots; that
corruption has reached an unprecedented level; that the investments by the
oil majors in that sector have dwindled dangerously; that the discovery of
Shale oil in the US threatens our economy; and that the government must
move fast to check the unprecedented high cases of crude oil theft.
”We have also issued numerous interventions on the victimization of
perceived political opponents of President Jonathan, citing the case of
Gov. Chibuike Amaechi as a reference point; that the Jonathan
administration has taken Nigerians for granted by ignoring monumental
cases of corruption and even embracing known corrupt officials as long as
their deep pockets can benefit the President’s political machinery, and
that the National Conference will not serve any purpose since it was
conceived as a political gimmick rather than a genuine effort to help lift
our country.
”Our party is delighted that these same issues were raised in the letter
by President Jonathan’s estranged political Godfather, his very own party
man. We recall that a few days earlier, another top PDP bigwig and the
nation’s number four citizen, Speaker Aminu Tambuwal, had lampooned the
Jonathan administration’s apathetic fight against corruption.
”Because truth is constant, gradually but surely, people are rising above
partisanship to join those of us who have been warning, ceaselessly, that
the ship of state is heading for the rocks because the Captain has decided
to ignore the radar and steer the ship blindly even in turbulent waters.
This jettisoning of partisanship and the coming out of heads that have
been buried in the sand for so long represent a good omen for Nigeria,” it
said.