The National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Olisa Metuh has said that the party will provide a decent and credible opposition that will constructively proffer sound alternatives to the policies and programmes of the in-coming administration without recourse to insults, propaganda and deceit.
Metuh who stated this at an FRCN political programme on Thursday evening said the PDP would never insult or denigrate the office and person of the Nigerian President.
He said: “The PDP is a political party built on values, tradition and utmost respect for democratic tenets. Our manifesto and ideology center on national peace, stability and prosperity and we shall uphold this at all times. In this wise, the PDP as always, will continue to work in the general interest of the Nigerian people.
“We will not resort to insults, blackmail and lies with the aim to distract or ridicule the person or office of the President. However, we must state in very strong terms that we will not allow them to lead the nation astray. So we will firmly oppose any anti-people policy and programmes as may be introduced by the APC.
“We will do this by presenting sound alternatives in such a manner that Nigerians will be the utmost beneficiaries especially on issues that will lead the nation in the path of national unity and development”, Metuh said while responding to questions at the programme.
Commenting on the conduct of the April 11, 2015 governorship and state assembly elections, Metuh lamented that the process was characterized by brazen irregularities against the PDP in most states. He upbraided INEC and security agencies for the barefaced overzealousness on the part of some of their personnel to please the winners of the Presidential elections.
Metuh said concerns are already on the rise regarding the fate of the nation’s democracy under the APC, especially given fears that the impunity that characterizes the local government elections it conducts in Southwest states may now be extended to other parts of the nation.
Noting that the elections witnessed massive conspiracy against the PDP, Metuh said his party would not complain in areas where the people clearly preferred the candidates of other parties, but will decisively pursue its mandate in places where there were clear infractions against the PDP.
He said such instances abound in states such as Imo, Jigawa, Plateau, Adamawa, Lagos, Bauchi, Kano, Kaduna, Zamfara, Nasarawa and other concerned states.
He observed that in Imo state, authentic result sheets were replaced with those from Kaduna and Katsina states with fictitious figures awarded to APC. According to him, the most scandalous was in Ideato North Local Government Area where INEC awarded about 34,000 votes to the APC even when the number of PVCs collected in the area stands at about 26,000.
The PDP spokesman said his party was collating and analyzing reports of the elections from across the country and will take decisive actions within the ambit of the law to protect the interest of its candidates and the mandate of the people.
He also noted that the PDP has commenced its rebuilding and repositioning effort and is poised to regain power in four years time.
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