By Myke Agunwa<\/p>\n
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The All Progressives Congress (APC) has taunted political economist and politician, Prof. Pat Utomi, over his declaration of a coalition shadow government, describing him as an \u201cintellectual drama king\u201d.<\/p>\n
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Utomi had earlier in April 24, said he is mobilizing 7.2 million Nigerians from all geo-political zones that will converge in Abuja for a protest tagged \u201cFreedom Converge,\u201d against the government of President Bola Tinubu and the APC.<\/p>\n
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He noted that the protest aims to reclaim the country from \u201centrenched systems of state capture and self-serving leadership\u201d and return power to the masses.<\/p>\n
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He lamented that \u201cThe recent spate of defections to the APC provides further evidence that all is not well with democracy in Nigeria\u201d.<\/p>\n
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Reacting to the issues, the National Publicity Secretary of the APC, Felix Morka dismissed Utomi\u2019s claim that the shadow government was a response to the \u201cpolicy missteps\u201d of the federal government, which he said had worsened poverty and silenced dissenting views.<\/p>\n
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Morka said Utomi had always enjoyed the full liberty to express his thoughts and form coalitions, regardless of their lack of realism or traction.<\/p>\n
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\u201cUtomi\u2019s unilateral declaration of a \u2018shadow government\u2019, in a presidential democracy, is, in and of itself, an exercise of democratic freedom and free speech, in the extreme,\u201d the statement reads in part.<\/p>\n
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Morka described as \u201creckless\u201d and \u201cirresponsible\u201d Utomi\u2019s comparison of Nigeria\u2019s current political climate to Adolf Hitler\u2019s Nazi Germany.<\/p>\n
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He added that such comparisons were beneath Utomi\u2019s intellectual standing and revealed a descent into \u201csensational and virulent discourse.<\/p>\n
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He argued that President Bola Tinubu\u2019s administration\u2019s tolerance of dissent is evident in the freedom Utomi has to make such pronouncements without consequence.<\/p>\n
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Morka said Utomi\u2019s string of failed political attempts, from seeking the APC governorship ticket in Delta in 2019 to his involvement in Peter Obi\u2019s 2023 campaign, has taken a toll on his sense of judgment.<\/p>\n
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He said Utomi was revising history by accusing the government of weaponising the removal of the petrol subsidy.<\/p>\n
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\u201cSimply exploiting and dramatizing what are inevitable initial difficulties associated with the policies Nigerians have had to endure for sustainable growth and prosperity is not genius; it smacks of crass political opportunism and desperation,\u201d Morka said.<\/p>\n
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He added that it is not the duty of the ruling APC to organise or educate opposition parties on how to manage their internal affairs.<\/p>\n
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He said opposition figures who claim to have superior solutions for Nigeria\u2019s challenges should first show capacity by managing their parties effectively.<\/p>\n
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\u201cThe wave of defections into the APC\u2026 is a clear endorsement of the visionary and inclusive leadership of President Bola Tinubu,\u201d Morka said.<\/p>\n
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He said those joining the APC have chosen \u201cpatriotism over partisanship\u201d and are ready to help reposition Nigeria under Tinubu\u2019s leadership.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By Myke Agunwa The All Progressives Congress (APC) has taunted political economist and politician, Prof. Pat Utomi, over his declaration of a coalition shadow government, describing him as an…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":118572,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-118571","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n