The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) says its Presidential Candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar is a symbol of national unity, cohesion and tolerance who is comfortable and is loved in all parts of the country.
This is contained in a statement by the PDP National Publicity Secretary, Mr Debo Ologunagba, in Abuja on Sunday.
The party was reacting to alleged comments made by Abubakar over his call for a northern presidency in 2023 as Stakeholders’ Meeting in Kaduna State at the weekend.
The party condemned the attempt to deliberately distort, doctor, misinterpret and take out of context, the comments by Abubakar at the meeting.
“For clarity and avoidance of doubt Abubakar remains a Pan-Nigerian leader.
”He has never and will never set any part of our country against the other as being mischievously hyped.
“To set the record straight, the PDP Presidential Candidate, in responding within the context of the question put to him at the event noted that he had built bridges across the country and that what Nigerians including an average northerner need was a Pan-Nigerian leader and not an ethnic champion,” the party said.
The party therefore calls on all Nigerians to remain focused on the PDP’s mission to rescue, reunite, rebuild and restore our nation on the path of peace, national cohesion and economic prosperity, which the Atiku/Okowa Presidential ticket represents.”
The All Progressives Congress (APC) 2023 Tinubu-Shettima Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) had accused Abubakar of only paying lip service to national unity.
Mr Bayo Onanuga, Director, Media and Publicity of the council stated on Sunday in Abuja that Abubakar had resorted to ethnic ”jingo” in the face of imminent defeat at the 2023 election.
He stated that Abubakar’s recent statement to the effect that northern Nigerians did not need a Yoruba or Igbo president was the worst expression of ethnocentric opportunism ever uttered by a former vice-president.
Meanwhile, a chieftain of Labour Party, Tim Ogwuru on Sunday in Abuja, said that the Presidential Candidate of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Atiku Abubakar, owe Igbo and Yoruba more explanation on why they should support him despite the ethnic bias.
The former Spokesperson in the 2019 Atiku Abubakar Presidential Campaign Council, Tim Ogwuru, advised Atiku to apologize to Igbos and Yorubas over his ethnic commentary in Kaduna if he intends to get votes from those regions.
Atiku had on Saturday during the Arewa town hall policy dialogue in Kaduna, in a video that went viral said, “What the average Northerner needs is somebody who is from the North; he doesn’t need a Yoruba candidate or an Igbo candidate.”
Reacting to the development, Ogwuru who is a chieftain of Labour Party asked the former Vice President to tender unreserved apology to Nigerians for whipping ethnic sentiments at the consultative meeting.
He said that the statement has made nonsense of the pan Nigeria and unifier claims of the PDP presidential candidate. He said that Atiku has disqualified himself from campaigning in Yoruba and Igbo lands adding that he cannot morally ask them to votes when he has already said that both tribes are inconsequential on his journey to the Presidential Villa in 2023.
According to Ogwuru, “The Honourable thing for him to do right now is to apologize profusely to the igbo’s and Yoruba’s. This is someone who kept saying that he is unifier. How can you go to Yoruba or Igbo land to campaign with this type commentary from a senior politician”.
He further said that the debasing statement has already reduced the ranking of Atiku in the eyes of the electorate adding that he has distinguished himself as an ethnic champion who is more of a divider than a unifier. He said that such remarks can only be made by one who has perfected plans to rig his way into the Presidential Villa.
“Atiku should honour himself with facts, figures or opinion polls to justify that kind of utterances . He can only say that if he is planning of rigging the election which may no longer be as easy as before. His claim of a pan nigeria completely contradictory based on that comments coming from him. When you eventually go to those regions to campaign be rest assured you may have to do more explanation”.
Atiku’s statement has triggered several condemnation in the social media with opposition parties asking the former Vice President to honourably disqualify himself from further participation in the presidential race.
