The ruling All Progressives Congress and the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party in Ogun State have criticised former President Olusegun Obasanjo for advising Nigerians not to vote for either of them in the 2019 general elections.
Obasanjo had recently in Abeokuta, the state capital, while announcing the collapse of his Coalition for Nigeria Movement into the African Democratic Congress, described both the APC and the PDP as two fingers of a leprous hand that Nigerians must avoid in the 2019 polls.
But the two parties in the state argued that the former president lacked the moral right to describe them in such uncharitable terms.
The state Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Bolaji Adeniji, who described Obasanjo’s ADC as a political party formed by selfish politicians, maintained that the PDP had been repositioned and was ready to take over power from the APC in 2019.
Adeniji said that though the former president was entitled to his opinion, he should not dictate to Nigerians on how to exercise their franchise.
He added that Obasanjo should leave Nigerians alone to take their individual decisions on the choice of the political party to vote for in the elections.
The PDP spokesman said, “We are not perturbed by the party. It is unfortunate, when former President Olusegun Obasanjo, who was a president on the platform of PDP on two occasions, made such a statement that the party that gave him its platform has suddenly become leprous. We also know that he was part of that history of PDP. So, if it has become leprous, it is self-indictment on his part.
“He (Obasanjo) is only one man. He has only one vote and he cannot speak for Nigerians. He is entitled to his opinion. It is now left for Nigerians to take decisions by themselves over who they want to vote for and the party they want to vote for. So, his saying they should not vote for PDP doesn’t make any meaning to the PDP.
“At the right time, the electorate, who are now wiser and ready to reject the mess called APC, will be willing to embrace the PDP that they know has the interest of the people at heart and is now repositioned and refocused, rather than engaging some reactionary platform meant to meet the personal and selfish purpose of some people.”
Also speaking, the APC state Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Sola Lawal, said that the former president was only making a noise.
Lawal maintained that the ADC was not a political party, but “a colony of jesters.”
