The leading opposition party, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has faulted the move by the All Progressives Congress, APC, to reconcile all the aggrieved parties in its fold.
It described the move as inconsequential, saying that it would not amount to electoral victory in 2019.
President Muhammadu Buhari had during the week appointed the national leader of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, to reconcile all the warring factions of the party.
The move is to prepare the party ahead of the 2019 election.
But reacting in a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan, PDP said Nigerians were angered as a result of the pains inflicted on them by the Buhari administration and would not be bought over through any reconciliation within the APC.
“Nigerians today suffer from pains inflicted on them by this administration and no amount of manipulation of individuals and public institutions can make them change their resolve to vote out APC in 2019, particularly as the party is stuck with an unpopular candidate.
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“The PDP therefore finds APC’s attempt to reconcile its dwindling ranks as laughable, cosmetic and politically inconsequential,” Ologbondiyan said in the statement.
Ologbondiyan added that already, Nigerians were rallying with the repositioned and rebranded PDP as “we are poised to present a credible, competent and reliable candidate through a free, fair and transparent presidential primary.”
PDP said it had become very obvious that the Presidency had become so panicky that it hijacked the functions of the leadership of the APC by appointing people into partisan offices.
The PDP blamed the disagreements in the APC on the resentment towards Buhari’s desperation for power.
“There is widespread disenchantment and indignation across the nation resulting from hunger and the inability of the Buhari Presidency to provide the people with basic necessities of life, which they had always enjoyed in the past.
‘Nigerians are therefore waiting to see how Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, who has also openly expressed his concerns and disapprovals on the mismanagement of the economy and whose large constituents are direct victims of the ineptitude, impunity, nepotism, dictatorial tendencies, corruption and insecurity that has characterized the Buhari Presidency, will now turn around to preach that all is well and attempt to sell a practically bad product to the nation,” PDP added.
In a related development, the PDP has commended Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike and his Ekiti State counterpart, Ayo Fayose, for visiting Benue State and extending assistance to victims of the recent violent attacks and other internally displaced persons in the state.
The party leadership, which had earlier visited Benue at the wake of the attacks, said the gesture by the two governors underlined PDP’s commitment to the wellbeing of all Nigerians in line with its undying ideology and vision of its founding fathers.