Buhari’s refusal to address the country on May 29 is because he’s weighed down with failure – PDP

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has claimed that President Muhammdu Buhari’s refusal to address the country on May 29 was because he was weighed down with failure.

In a statement released on Sunday, by its National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, the opposition party accused the Buhari administration of “ruining our once robust economy; failing to secure our nation, failing to curb endemic corruption in his administration and mortgaging the future of our nation with huge foreign loans”.

It claimed that instead of addressing the “over 40 million Nigerians who had lost their jobs following the failure of his administration to run a viable economy as well as the over 500,000 N-power beneficiaries, whose engagements are set to be terminated barely a year after they were used to campaign for a second tenure for the All Progressives Congress (APC)”,, Buhari chose to defer the address.

Recall that on June 11, 2019, President Muhammdu Buhari signed the June 12 Democracy Day Bill into law in recognition of the date, that Chief Moshood Kashimawo Abiola of the then Social Democratic Party, (SDP) was believed to have won the presidential election in 1993.

When the President did not address the nation as is customary on May 29 which is the anniversary of the inauguration of new administrations and previously labelled Democracy Day, many Nigerians were quick to point out that the date had been moved to June 12. A suggestion the PDP clearly overlooked in its statement.

On May 29, the Presidency published this 62-paged document which contained the administration’s achievements in the five years it has been at the helm.

The achievements include impact made in Agriculture, the Presidential Fertiliser Initiative, support for micro, small and medium enterprises, Ease of Doing Business, payment of pensions and gratuity to staff of the defunct NITEL, Nigeria Airways, and many others.

Ignoring the successes listed in the document, the PDP said the Buhari was afraid of having to address issues around corruption, the economy as well as recent and previous killings in Sokoto, Katsina, Kaduna, Kogi, Zamfara and other states.

“What soothing words could Mr President have for over 40 million Nigerians who had lost their jobs following the failure of his administration to run a viable economy as well as the over 500,000 N-power beneficiaries, whose engagements are set to be terminated barely a year after they were used to campaign for a second tenure for the APC.

“Furthermore, Mr President is faced with providing answers for the fall in the value of our naira and the depletion of our foreign reserves; for the failure of his administration to reduce the price of fuel despite the price crash in the international market; for the comatose state of our critical sectors as well as the unbridled looting of over N14 trillion in the oil and gas sector under his watch.

“President Buhari is equally confronted with the burden of not finding solutions for the killings in Sokoto, Katsina, Kaduna, Kogi, Zamfara and other states by marauders, kidnappers and insurgents despite claims by the government that the assailants have been routed out.

“In the same vein, President Buhari has no success story on the APC administration’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, which was marred by allegations of corruption and political parochialism, which frustrated an all-inclusive multi-sectoral approach in the effort.

“The PDP and indeed most Nigerians appreciate President Buhari’s decision not to address the nation and fall into the temptation of making false performance claims. Such would have further embarrassed his administration.

“Our party however charges Mr. President to use the remaining three years of his tenure to brace up to the demands of his office in the overall interest of the nation”, the statement said.