Afenifere Renaissance Youth Congress (ARYG) has alleged that former President Olusegun Obasanjo is working from within to damage the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) hence, it has called on him to formally declare for the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC).
The group, which comprises many members of the PDP in the South-west zone, frowned at frequent criticism of President Goodluck Jonathan by Obasanjo who has unfettered access to the State House.
Speaking, the group leader, Mr. Abimbola Owolabi, wondered why the former President who chose to remain in the party could respect the provisions of the party Constitution, especially the section that frowns at bringing the name and image of the Party into disrepute.
“Obasanjo is not only denigrating the presidency, the person of Dr. Goodluck Jonathan and the ruling Party, which he claims to be a member of by his constant lies, unwarranted attacks and mischievous blackmail to portray President Jonathan as weak, corrupt and dictatorial but also manifestly executing the propaganda of the APC whose members he now hobnobs with.
“These days, there is a complete sync between Obasanjo’s utterances and those of Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the APC spokesperson.
“After listening to General Obasanjo’s lies that President Jonathan is running a corrupt government and incapable of dealing with the insurgency problems in the North, at the launch of the auto-biography of Retired Justice Mustapha Akanbi, we have come to the conclusion that the former president does not mean well for this country and the PDP.
“How can Obasanjo who elevated the bribing of National Assembly members, especially during his ill-fated Third Term agenda, to a state policy during his regime point finger of guilt at President Jonathan? Or does Obasanjo think that Nigerians have such a short memory as to forget how he nearly emptied the national treasury to the lawmakers in his desperate quest for an unconstitutional third term in office?
“The same man (Obasanjo) who is now accusing Jonathan of working against democracy has been the worst enemy of democracy in the country.
“He deployed troops to Odi and leveled an entire village without achieving any meaningful results over the Niger Delta militancy only to leave the mess for the late President Umaru Yar’Adua and Jonathan (who was then the vice president) to clear.
“It was Obasanjo’s recklessness and complete disrespect for the rule of law that prompted his successor to quickly adopt rule of law as the mantra of his administration,” Owolabi stated.
The group further said that it was at a loss as to why an elder statesman like former President Obasanjo will be peddling lies as facts just to damage politically, President Jonathan and his party, the PDP.
“When Obasanjo points to the collapse of education and infrastructure in the Northeast as responsible for breeding insurgency, he conveniently forgets that he ruled this country for a combined period of eleven years as military head of state and civilian president.
“What that means is that instead of President Jonathan who is committing funds to Almajiri education, Obasanjo should be held complicit for the underdevelopment of the North,” the group stated.
The group therefore called on Obasanjo to move out of the PDP and pitch his tent with the APC now that he has donned the garb of an opposition element.
According to the group, “Obasanjo is a war General; he should be bold enough to show to Nigerians his APC membership card. He is too old for this chicanery and the hide-and-seek game he is playing within the PDP.”
