The
Ondo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party has asked President
Muhammadu Buhari to begin his probe of corrupt government officials from
those that preceded former President Goodluck Jonathan and not the
Jonathan administration alone.
The PDP, in a statement by its Director
of Publicity in the state, Mr. Ayo Fadaka, on Thursday, alleged that
President Buhari was selective in his plans to recover looted funds and
prosecute corrupt public officials.
The party, therefore, warned Buhari to desist from an alleged witch-hunt of PDP members.
It said that the party was not against
actions that would rid the nation of corruption, but that the party
would resist efforts to malign the PDP.
The
statement partly read, “It is important to stress that we will not
allow him to make selective prosecution of corrupt persons as the battle
against corruption must be total.
“We have taken due cognizance of the
fact that since President Buhari assumed office on May 29 , Nigerians
are daily getting accustomed to declarations about corruption and how
Mr. President’s administration is gearing up to take decisive actions on
such development.
“It is getting alarming that the only
agenda that Buhari seems to have is to ridicule the tenure of his
predecessor, Goodluck Jonathan, through the numerous declarations that
seem to suggest that every action of that regime was corrupt, and
obviously this is not true.
“Therefore, our intention is to awaken
Buhari to the fact that there remains many assignments of the nation
begging for attention and sadly enough, he does not seem to recognise
this fact as his attitude continues to suggest that corruption remains
the only problem that Nigeria faces.”
The PDP said Buhari’s latest accusation
that former ministers who served during the Jonathan government sold one
million barrels of oil per day was not only sensational but a mere
gimmick to divert the attention of Nigerians.
The party said since Buhari became
President, he has failed to address the issue of fuel scarcity, and the
sale of fuel above the approved pump price.
It also said insurgency has assumed a more serious dimension.
The party said, “We also wish to remind
Buhari that the issue of stealing petroleum is not a new development in
our nation, it is a crime that dates back to many decades. So we query
what he stand to gain by seeking to attach this crime to the Jonathan
administration alone.
“ We urge him to begin work as time is running out. The nation continues to suffer this rudderless approach to governance.”