The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) says it is on the same page with the federal government in the fight against corruption, but asked that due process must be followed to ensure that innocent citizens are not victimised.
The party, which admitted that President Muhammadu Buhari was not corrupt, however, called for the probe of All Progressives Congress (APC) leaders whom it said were the “worst corrupt set of Nigerians”.
The PDP in a statement issued by Olisa Metuh, its spokesman, on Tuesday said the clarification had become necessary to remove any misconception that it was against the decision of the present administration to probe some past officials of government because they are members of the party. “The PDP supports the decision of the federal government to fight corruption in our country. However, we make bold to state that it should not be used as a guise to victimize innocent citizens.
Democracy has come to stay in Nigeria and no citizen, irrespective of political, religious or ethnic affiliation should be denied access to due process and the rule of law in the process,” it said. “In the same vein, we want to state categorically that the anti-corruption war, whilst targeted at the immediate past administration should not by any means be blind to the impunity of the present leaders of the country either in terms of borrowing and spending without recourse to the statutory arms and organs of government and dictates of transparency and accountability, or in terms of nepotism in appointments in key institutions such as INEC and the DSS.
“The anti-corruption effort must not be blind to the corrupting of the security system resulting in the intrusion by over-zealous operatives on issues bordering purely on politics; the hounding, arrest and detention of resident electoral officers and members of election tribunals in Rivers, Akwa Ibom and other PDP states.
“Furthermore we make bold to state that he who comes to equity must come with clean hands. In that regard therefore, we advice members of the APC blowing the horn ahead of the cart to keep quiet because many of them have been major beneficiaries of corruption and sleazes associated with themselves and their allies, especially one of them who as a disguised errand boy of a well known APC leader is a major beneficiary of the largesse of perpetrators of corruption.
“Apart from Mr President, who for now, is not associated with any sleaze or corrupt activity in this democracy, most APC leaders are still those who as governors, ministers and labour leaders have been the worst corrupt set of Nigerians ever to bestride the political landscape of the country.
“It is a great miscarriage of perception therefore for APC leaders who are perpetrators of sleazes and corrupt acts to attempt to deceive Nigerians with imaginary holiness in this anti-corruption war by the president.
“Consequently, we counsel Mr President, as the leader of the APC to remove the log in the eyes of his party while we support his commitment to remove the speck from the eyes of others.”
