The Presidency has lashed out at senators for asking President Muhammadu Buhari to address Nigerians in a television broadcast on his government’s plans to deal with the coronavirus outbreak.
Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, in a statement on Thursday described the calls as ‘sensational and cheap politics. ‘
He said this was a time for all Nigerians to unite against the pandemic, and not the time to attack the ruling All Progressives Congress.
The statement read: “We also plead with Nigerians not to see this most peculiar of times as one to be politicised or seen as an opportunity to regurgitate grudges against the government or the ruling All Progressives Congress. North, South, East, and West – all Nigerians must unite to fight this plague, irrespective of religious or ideological affiliation.
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“In this regard, populist advocacies such as the one accusing the President of ‘complacency’ simply because he has not made a television address by ranking members of our respected parliament are cheap and sensational. These are not the times for populism and cheap politics.”
According to Shehu, the government has put in place palliatives measures including the reduction of petrol pump price from N145 to N125 per litre to cushion the effect of the pandemic.
He also reminded that N1.1tn fund had been approved by the Central Bank of Nigeria to assist businesses.
Recall that the Senate had on Wednesday called on Buhari to address Nigerians on the coronavirus in the country.