The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) demands the immediate release of its
presidential campaign spokesperson in Kogi state, Mr. Austin Okai, who
was abducted this evening by armed thugs unleashed by the All
Progressives Congress (APC).
The party also said the Inspector General of Police, Adamu Mohammed,
should immediately disband the checking point in Banda, Lokoja-Abuja
highway, where the members of opposition are being harassed and
intimidated.
The PDP says its members as well as the people of Kogi state cannot
stomach the abduction of Mr. Austin Okai as well as the arrest of its
members for flimsy reasons by the APC.
PDP cautions that the continued stay in captivity of Kogi state party
leaders can spark off crisis in the state.
We urge the Inspector General of Police, Adamu Mohammed, to immediately
step into the matter to forestall a break down of law and order. This is
because, if Mr. Austin Okai and others are not immediately released by
the APC, it would send a very wrong signal to the already agitated youth
and lead to a resort to self-help.
The PDP also alerts of the arrest of its ward chairmen in Rivers state
by soldiers, particularly in Abua-Odual Local Government Area,
ostensibly in compliance with the orders of the Buhari Presidency.
The mass arrest in Rivers is coming on the heels of the clampdown of PDP
members in Kano state with the arrest of our party leaders and campaign
officials including our Senatorial candidate Ahmed Haruna Bichi and a
serving member of the House of Representatives, Hon. Ahmed Garba Bichi.
The PDP notes that these are two very volatile states and any act that
suggests a clamp down by the authorities might lead to vehement
resistance by the people and trigger crisis in the state.
We call on Nigerians to note how the Buhari Presidency and the APC are
pushing Nigerians to the wall and invite the international community to
hold President Buhari directly responsible for these infractions against
innocent Nigerians.