The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has observed that the country is asphyxiated, in dire straits and fast grinding to a halt under President Bola Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress (APC).
In a statement issued on Monday by the National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, the main opposition party lamented that Nigeria is at the edge of the precipice under the Tinubu-led APC hold which “lacks the acceptability and followership of citizens; a situation that has created an atmosphere and feeling of absence of governance in the country.”
The statement added “the party is alarmed that there is a serious disconnection between the government and the citizens arising from the ill-planned and hasty implementation of policies that have brought excruciating hardship, horrifying insecurity and a general sense of apprehension that is already threatening the peace, unity and corporate existence of our nation.
“The administration’s lack of ingenuity, tact and sensitivity towards the wellbeing of Nigerians in the removal of subsidy and floating of the naira inflamed unbearable high cost of living, crippled our national productivity, crashed millions of businesses and sparked massive job loss with attendant escalated poverty, hunger, insecurity and hopelessness across the country.
“The situation has snowballed into a dangerous loss of investors’ confidence with international companies exiting our nation and leaving millions of Nigerians stranded in the labour market with crippling effect on Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) which are the real drivers of our national economy.
“It is horrifying that in the last two months, over 150 million Nigerians can no longer afford their daily meals with families now going to bed on empty stomachs.
“It is appalling that the APC government continues to tout their fraud-prone palliative program of a miserable average of 1,200 bags of rice to Nigerians in each State of the country. The APC has expanded its capacity to deceive and defraud Nigerians through phony programmes; a situation that has heightened frustration across the country.”
On the issue of insecurity, the PDP lamented the inability of the administration to rescue the members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) kidnapped on their way to Sokoto State for their national assignment.
The party noted that it is distressing that the APC government had “turned a blind eye to the plight of Nigerians with no concrete commitment towards the safety of lives of our citizens despite the killing of over 500 Nigerians in Plateau, Benue, Niger, Kaduna and other states of the federation, with many more abducted since May 29, 2023.
“The failure of the APC government to decisively act since the abduction of eight corps members who were on their way to Sokoto State for their one-year mandatory national service is another ugly testament of the APC government’s insensitivity towards the security, safety and wellbeing of citizens.
“More disturbing is the recent downing of a Nigerian military aircraft with attendant loss of lives of our brave and gallant military personnel without a corresponding reassuring statement from the APC government.
“Currently, under the APC, life expectancy in Nigeria has plummeted. Citizens and residents live in constant apprehension and cannot move freely across the country for fear of being killed or abducted.
“Instead of protecting Nigerians, the APC government is desperate to plunge our nation into a needless war in Niger Republic over a conflict in that nation that does not constitute any threat whatsoever to our National Interest.”
The PDP expressed concern about what it observed as “the general sense of despondency, anxiety, distress and disconnection in the country, if not urgently addressed, could deteriorate into a serious crisis.”
It charged Nigerians to remain calm, law-abiding and continue to support one another in their quest for a secure and economically thriving nation.
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