Umahi’s defection: PDP replies Buhari

The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, says the comment by President Muhammadu Buhari on the defection of Governor Dave Umahi to the All Progressives Congress, APC, proves he has abandoned his presidential responsibilities.

The National publicity secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, in a statement, points out that the presidency statement exposes that the nation was brought to her knees as compelling demands of the office are made to suffer while the presidency gloats over trivial issues.

The party said the development also exposed the President’s incompetence and poor understanding of the tenets of leadership, statesmanship, and expectations of his office.

The PDP holds as appalling that Buhari’s presidency is showing more urgency in commenting on political adventures rather than expressing concern on the reported kidnapping of 12 senior police officers by bandits.

It observed that if President Buhari had used the same urgency he displayed in commenting on Governor Umahi’s defection to address the issue of police brutality, the crisis situation, death, arson, destruction of public and private property witnessed in the aftermath of the End SARS protest would have been averted.

The opposition party also noted that “the President would have also shown similar urgency towards the demand for the rejigging of our national security architecture, we would have averted the escalated insurgency, kidnapping, and bloodletting ravaging our country today.”

In the same vein, the party said that if President Buhari had used the same urgency to respond to the call to reorganize his economic team, end the corruption in his government as well as address the frightening upsurge in unemployment under his watch, “our nation would not be in this sorry state as the poverty capital of the world.”

The PDP urged President Buhari to wake up and show more seriousness to the duties of his office instead of engaging in the personal political enterprise of individuals.

The PDP, therefore, counselled President Buhari’s handlers to stop ridiculing his office by making him a butt of joke in the public space.