Buhari’s Independence Broadcast: An insult to Nigerians, mockery of democracy ― PDP

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Tuesday described the President Muhammadu Buhari’s Independence Day broadcast as an insult on the psyche of Nigerians and a mockery of the national integrity as an independent state.

In a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Mr Kola Ologbondiyan, the party stated that the speech was “completely unpresidential, lacking in patriotic stance and replete with manifest inconsistencies, contradictions, paradoxes and false performance claims” which further confirmed that the country was in wrong hands.

It lamented  that President Buhari, in his recorded address, failed to forcefully address the key issues of freedom, social justice, constitutional order, separation of powers, rule of law, human rights, credible elections, national cohesion, accountability and transparency in government; the very fundamentals of an independent state, because his administration had violated them all.

According to the statement, “the party regretted that President Buhari had no forceful reassurances on the challenge of escalated insecurity under his watch; he had no clear-cut and operable blueprint to revamp our economy, which his administration wrecked in a period of four years, resulting in so much hardship and despondency that Nigerians now resort to suicide and slavery abroad as options

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“Our party notes that this address further exposes that the Buhari Presidency is not interested in nation-building; that it is completely disconnected from the people and remains insensitive to the plights of Nigerians

“The PDP states that if anything, Mr President only succeeded in further demonstrating that his administration is, indeed, in no position to deliver a credible, acceptable and satisfactory independence address

“This is so because, under the Buhari Presidency, our nation has experienced the worst form of division, deprivation, human right abuse, constitutional violations, disregard to rule of law, electoral malpractices, disobedience to a court order, disrespect for separation of powers and curtailing of press freedom

“The PDP further laments that due to the incompetence and legitimacy challenges confronting the Buhari Presidency, our nation is losing her voice and due regard in the international arena; as the administration has remained lacking in the required capacity and boldness to forcefully engage other world leaders on critical issues

“The dearth in foreign direct investment and the inhuman treatments being meted out on our citizens in countries where we were once held in very high esteem, are some of the injuries our nation is suffering under the Buhari administration

“The party describes as depressing that while other leaders motivate their citizens on a day like this, President Buhari is presenting uninspiring claims, propaganda and empty promises”.

It, however, urged “Nigerians not to despair but keep hope alive as we collectively await the  Supreme Court to deliver justice and retrieve our stolen Presidential mandate, so that the nation will have a leadership that it truly deserves at this point in our national history”.