PDP: APC Candidate Hoarding Cash, Causing Nigerians Pains

Tinubu: Opposition Creating National Siege to Disrupt Elections

•Hold me, my family responsible if I fail to perform, Obi declares

•I’ll prioritise education, security, Kwankwaso reiterates commitments

Onyebuchi Ezigbo and Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja

The Atiku/Okowa Presidential Campaign, has alleged that the hoarding of the new Naira notes by the Presidential Candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, was causing Nigerians unimaginable pain and wrecking their means of livelihood.

But the former governor of Lagos State has accused the opposition PDP of working to create a national siege with a view to disrupting the presidential election due in a few days. At the same time, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Mr. Peter Obi, has told Nigerians to hold him and his family accountable should he fail to fulfill his promises as president.

Similarly, the presidential candidate of the New Nigeria People’s Party, (NNPP), Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, has promised to prioritise education and security if elected, too.

Nevertheless, the APC campaign council, yesterday, launched the Renewed Hope Ambassadors of Nigeria, with a mandate to mobilise 3.5 million votes for Tinubu.

One of the spokespersons for the PDP campaign, Kola Ologbondiyan, in a statement, yesterday, said the APC Campaign was desperate to mop up new naira notes by swapping them with their “ill-gotten” old notes stashed away in secret vaults.

He said, having been rejected by Nigerians, the ruling party had relied solely on vote-buying, financial inducements and heavy bribing to compromise and derail the electoral process. 

The PDP campaign said it was disturbed by the harrowing experiences being faced by Nigerians, who were at the receiving end of the Tinubu Campaign-induced cash scarcity ravaging the nation at this time.

According to Ologbondiyan, “Our campaign is alarmed by the exposed plot by Tinubu Campaign and some APC governors to secretly swap a whooping N22.5 billion in old N1000 new notes in Kano as well as Lagos State, where they will be warehoused for vote buying for the deflated Tinubu campaign.

“More disgusting is that the Tinubu Campaign has disgracefully resorted to hypocritical propaganda, shedding of crocodile tears, pointing fingers at others and posturing as champions of the people, when they are the real enemies of Nigerians.

“The Tinubu Campaign, in its fear of the looming failures at the February 25 polls, has turned out like a desperate ferocious wolf seeking to devour the people while at the same time trying to cloak itself in the innocent skin of a sheep.”

He however, noted that it was devastating to see Nigerians sleeping in the cold at ATM centers, assaulted by the elements of nature, fighting one another in banking halls and ATM stalls in the struggle to get some little cash just because the Tinubu campaign and corrupt APC leaders had diverted the new notes for their selfish political reasons.

“We find it disheartening that Tinubu and his allies are taking Nigerians from APC-induced seven years of weaponised hunger to a wholesome poverty by triggering this unbearable cash scarcity that has wrecked small businesses, destabilised homes and sunk millions of Nigerians into deeper financial abyss,” he said.

But Tinubu who spoke in Abuja, yesterday, sympathised with the people especially the downtrodden, who had been made to bear the brunt of the new naira policy by the Central Bank and irregular supply of petrol that had combined to inflict avoidable pains on the masses.

“This is a challenging period in the life of our country, when our people are made to stay on the line for hours to get fuel and even get their own money from the banks. I empathise with Nigerians across the country especially the poor masses, who have been made to bear the brunt and pains of the CBN Naira policy and fuel scarcity the most.

“While government continues to work to solve these problems,  let’s stay calm, maintain the peace and continue to shun and avoid any act capable of causing civil unrest and disharmony. What the opposition and enemies of democracy want is to create a state of national siege  and tension that can disrupt the coming general election and create an atmosphere of strife in our country.

“We must say no to them. We must be resolute and stand firm to protect our democracy by ensuring we hold our elections in a peaceful and orderly manner. I am in this race to bring renewed hope and prosperity to all Nigerians. There are no challenges that will be difficult for us as a people to surmount when we stand in unity of purpose.

“When you elect me, I will work to ensure security, economic prosperity, national unity and cohesion and we will together build a country that will be a source of joy to us all and a pride to every black person everywhere in the world,” Tinubu said.

While commending the NNPC Limited for the fuel supply relief being enjoyed in the Federal Capital Territory and urged the company  to step up its act to bring relief round the country, he also urged the CBN not to be dogmatic in the deadline it has fixed for the transition from old naira notes to the new ones, especially, as the unintended consequences of the policy has been massive pain on the people.

Tinubu said he was distressed by news of cash strapped farmers  having to sell their products excessively cheap to avoid losing all, adding that, such dispiriting experience in the short term might be a disincentive to our hardworking farmers.

The former Lagos governor, however, assured Nigerians that the current challenges would soon be over, even as he pleaded with the people to avoid anything capable of causing unrest in the country even when they were justifiably angry.

Speaking yesterday at a session with Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC)  delegates, who converged on Abuja to elect new national officers, Obi said the best way for Nigerians to interrogate candidates on their ability to fight corruption was to check their antecedents.

“It is not enough for someone to just pledge that he will fight corruption. You check the candidates’ actions in his former places of service and see if did not in anyway compromise and show bias to his relations and friends. 

“For me, my records are there in Anambra State, when I served as governor. I insisted that I should go through most of the contents of my manifesto and sign onto them, because I believe that Nigerians will hold me, my family and children responsible at the end of day if I failed to perform, not members of my party,” he said.

He restated his pledge to arrest the insecurity in the country and return the country from consumption to production, adding also that he had the needed capacity and competence to make it happen.

Kwankwanso, on his part, said he would use his experience in Kano state to rebuild the country if elected.

Tinubu and Atiku Abubakar were however absent at the event, but when a former governor of Edo State and erstwhile Labour leader, Adams Oshiomhole, rose to announce his representation of Tinubu, he was shouted down and booed by the workers, who demanded it was either the candidates or no other person.

Meanwhile, at the launch of the Renewed Hope Ambassadors for Tinubu, in Abuja, Director, Civil Societies Directorate, APC PCC and Senator representing Yobe South Senatorial District, Mohammed Hassan, said the group was  expected to have vote canvassers of 20 people in each of the 176, 846 polling units spread across the six geopolitical zones of the federation.

He said: “You will agree with me that our nation is at the cusp of a significant transition programme, the outcome of which will have far-reaching consequences not only for this generation but for generations to come. Across our towns and inner cities, the need to spread the gospel of renewed hope among our people has become ever so necessary ahead of the upcoming elections.

“It is on the heels of this, that the Directorate of Civil Society Organization which is under the Asiwaju- Shettima Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) thought it worthwhile to convene and inaugurate this group of Ambassadors who will be officially commissioned to go to all the polling units to actualise the renewed hope mandate.”

Hassan claimed the group already had structures and coordinators in the six geopolitical zones for effective administration, who would swing to immediate action once inaugurated

Also, National Coordinator of the group, Dr. Tunji  Asaolu, said the Directorate was taking it upon itself to promote the manifesto of Tinubu by appointing ambassadors of hope to spread the message of hope, voter canvassers in all the polling units at all levels.

National Secretary, Renewed Hope of Nigeria, Okpokwu  Ogenyi, urged all the coordinators to work hard, show dedication and strong conviction to deliver on their mandate.