Anti-Buhari Graffiti: A demonstration of public resentment to APC misrule – PDP

Tunde Opalana, Abuja

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has said that the appearance of anti-Buhari demonstrations and graffiti in some major cities in the country is an unmistakable demonstration of public resentment to the misrule of the Buhari Presidency.

The party asserted that the graffiti which demands that “Buhari Must Go”, shows that Nigerians have completely lost hope in President Muhammadu Buhari and the All Progressives Congress (APC), given the unprecedented devastation, violence, poverty, and economic hardship that have enveloped the nation under their watch.

This graffiti by Nigerian youths are a loud remonstration against the impunity, divineness, high-level incompetence, massive corruption as well as insensitivity of the APC and its administration to the sorry situation they have plunged our dear nation.

National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan expressed the party’s position in a statement in Abuja yesterday.

The PDP said ” the Nigerian youths, by the graffiti, are demonstrating against the failure of President Buhari and the APC to take decisive steps to address the incessant mass killings, high-level unemployment, poverty, and economic hardship that their administration has foisted on our country.

“The graffiti is also an open aversion to the looting of over N15 trillion by APC leaders at the time our nation is battling with 33% unemployment rate; at a time over 40 million Nigerian have lost their means of livelihood due to APC misrule and where most families cannot afford the basic necessities of life.

“It is an open aversion to the reported looting of trillions of naira meant for the purchase of arms to secure our nation, at a time terrorists, bandits, and kidnappers are having a field day ravaging our communities and killing our compatriots.

“Moreover, the use of political graffiti by citizens is a global practice to express themselves particularly in democratic setting”

The party bemoaned the APC for repelling the swelling condemnation of the Buhari administration with political thugs and state apparatus where possible

It said “it is therefore a mark of intolerance, disdain and insensitivity to the plight of the people that instead of accepting and taking steps to address their anxieties, the APC chose to unleash their thugs to flog and dehumanize Nigerian citizens exercising their right to freedom of expression, as witnessed in Kogi state”.

The PDP rejected the pedestrian allegations of trespass as basis for the attack on the youths, “as anybody aggrieved in the direction being claimed, have the court as lawful channel for redress”.

The PDP recalls how in 2014, President Buhari, then as Presidential candidate of the APC, led other leaders of his party to take to the streets and disrupted public activities in exercise of such freedom and nobody hired thugs to attack or flog them in public.

“While urging Nigerians to remain calm despite these provocations, the PDP cautions the APC to note that its resort to suppression of freedom of expression cannot obliterate the fact that the people are only waiting for the next general election to flog them with their votes”, the party said.