By Ishaya Ibrahim
The All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Tuesday continued their war of words over the killing of more than 100 Nigerian soldiers by suspected Boko Haram terrorists in Borno State.
Irked by the PDP allegations that military funds had been diverted to finance the 2019 election campaigns of the APC, the ruling party said the allegation was a “sad reminder of the evil and retrogressive practices the PDP was notorious for during its defunct rule.”
A statement by the party’s national publicity secretary, Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu said, “God forbid that the APC inherits and applies such morbid practice as brazenly displayed during the immediate-past PDP administration where funds allocated to fight the Boko Haram insurgency in the Northeast were shared among PDP leaders and their cronies.”
But the opposition party doubled down on its allegation. In a statement by its national publicity secretary, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan, the PDP called APC wicked for attempting to justify Buhari’s insensitivity to killing of soldiers, diversion of military funds.
“The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) describes the effort by the APC to justify President Muhammadu Buhari’s neglect of our fighting troops, leading to the killing of over 100 soldiers by insurgents, as abhorrent, reprehensible and a slap on the sensibility of Nigerians.”
But the APC dismissed the allegation.
“It is clear that the PDP and its presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar have decided to dance on the graves of our valiant and patriotic soldiers by politicising their deaths in the recent Boko Haram attack on the Nigerian Army Metele base.
“The PDP and Atiku are playing desperate politics where even the blood of our fallen heroes is fair game. Their actions are callous and insensitive to the families and dependants of the late soldiers and indeed our military which battles daily to ensure our territorial integrity.
“Nigerians see through PDP’s ploy to score political points as elections approach and it will surely backfire.
“While the APC mourns the death of our military and other security personnel who have lost their lives in the line of duty, we urge them to remain focused on the brave task of securing the nation. The President Muhammadu Buhari-led APC administration remains solidly committed to bringing lasting peace and security to all parts of the country and ensuring that previously displaced persons are rehabilitated to resume their normal and productive lives,” the ruling party said.
But the PDP said the APC, as a party, had fully demonstrated that it was a dysfunctional organisation that attaches no value to the lives of Nigerian soldiers and other Nigerians, but more interested in seeing funeral ceremonies and floating over the graves of its victims.
“Why would the APC attempt to wave off revelations, which are already in the public domain, that officials of the Buhari Presidency are diverting funds meant for military equipment and welfare of our soldiers to finance Mr. President’s re-election campaign?” it queried.
“If the APC were not jittery over revelations that it is a core beneficiary of this evil racket, why is it rushing to defend the Minister of Defence on findings that he diverted military funds to produce campaign materials for the APC including an electronic momento, with APC logo boldly inscribed on them?
“The APC, in its hallucination, forgot that Nigerians already know that the neglect of the Buhari Presidency led to the killing of our soldiers and that the President and the APC had remained unconcerned and only started shedding crocodile tears after a public outcry on the killing and their ominous silence.
“We challenge the APC to explain to Nigerians why it took President Buhari, as Commander-in-Chief, a whole week to express ‘shock’ over the killing of over 100 of our soldiers?
“Does that not portray our president as a commander who has abandoned his troops and cares less of happenings in the front?
“What has the APC to say to the fact that the Buhari Presidency failed to act on the threats by insurgents to attack the military base days before the deadly invasion and killing of our soldiers?
“What has APC to say to the fact that at the time our soldiers were being attacked by insurgents, our Service Chiefs were busy participating in President Buhari’s re-election campaign rally and launch of Next Level mantra, stolen from a foreign institute?
“What has the APC to say to the fact that instead of being at the forefront of investigations, our Minister of Defence was busy using military funds to produce campaign souvenirs for President Buhari and the APC?
“It is therefore an unpardonable assault on the sensibility of Nigerians for the APC to, in anyway, attempt to justify President Buhari’s negligence and inaction toward the welfare of our soldiers as well as the diversion of military fund for Mr. President re-election campaign at the expense of the lives of Nigerians.
“If the APC is not complicit in this heinous crime against our nation, we challenge it to join the PDP in demanding for a National Assembly inquest into the killing and the handling of anti-insurgency funds under President Buhari, instead of this resort to wicked hypocritical posturing.”