August 7, 2018
Press Statement
Save Nigeria, PDP Tells NASS
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) calls on the National Assembly to
immediately pull the full weight of all legislative instruments against
President Muhammadu Buhari, as that is the only way to save our nation
from an imminent collapse.
The party said in sending armed security men to invade the National
Assembly and block lawmakers from accessing the legislative chambers,
today, Tuesday August 7, 2018, President Buhari has crossed the line by
placing our democracy in jeopardy, thus setting our nation on the path
of anarchy.
The invasion of our highest legislative institution by agents of the
Buhari-led executive, a few months after the Senate mace was blazingly
carted away by armed hoodlums, is condemnable, reprehensible,
unpardonable, and completely unacceptable.
With this siege, barely a week after presiding officers of the Senate
were held hostage at their residences, it has become clear that the
Buhari Presidency and the All Progressives Congress (APC) intend to
forcefully overrun and ultimately shutdown the highest lawmaking organ
of the Nigerian government and pave the way for the total suspension of
constitutional rule in the country.
The PDP notes in this administration’s quest to foist a fascist regime
our country, the APC-led government has taken several steps and actions
tending towards the suspension of the 1999 Constitution (as amended),
including direct usurpations of the duties and powers of the National
Assembly and the judiciary in governance.
Nigerians and the international community will recall that the PDP had
earlier alerted of this plot, which included the phony medical trip to
London for President Buhari as an alibi to exonerate him from any blame
for this sordid assaults on democracy.
The PDP, therefore, calls on the Government of Britain to support
Nigeria at this perilous time by not shielding President Buhari in
London. Nigerians urge the British government and other members of the
international community to immediately condemn and totally reject the
ugly developments our country.
President Buhari and his APC have consecutively and deliberately put our
nation and its democracy on harm’s way and the National Assembly, as
representatives of the people, must eschew all partisan interests and
save the nation by immediately deploying all legislative instruments
against President Buhari before it is too late.
It is instructive to state that if today’s assault on our legislature
had succeeded, it would have been the second time Muhammadu Buhari would
have toppled constitutional rule in our country.
Finally, the PDP commends Nigerians, who marched out in their numbers
today, in response to our earlier call, to resist this brigandage
against our nation even as we urge them to remain alert, as eternal
vigilance is the price of liberty.
Signed:
Kola Ologbondiyan
National Publicity Secretary
