The National Chairman of the
ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Adams Oshiomhole, the National Chairman
of the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and the Governor of
Rivers State, Nyesom Wike yesterday, clashed over issues concerning President
Muhammadu Buhari.
The verbal exchange took place
during the unveiling of the book “The Big Interviews” written by Mr. Eric
Osagie, in Abuja, yesterday, according to the Sun.
Oshiomhole had in his goodwill
message, said it was good for leaders to practise what they preached.
He also said that Nigerian
journalists should exude fearlessness and courage and ask hard questions during
interviews.
Oshiomhole said Buhari would be
the easiest person to be interviewed by Osagie as he did not wear boxing gloves,
but talk in a soft tone.
The former Edo State Governor
recalled how he watched an interview by a former Nigerian president, who he
alleged was a mentor to Governor Wike.
Oshiomhole said the ex-president,
while speaking on population growth in Africa, said the problem of Africa was
due to lack of population control which he identified as the main reason for
poverty in the continent.
Oshiomhole went on to say the
interviewer further asked the ex-president that as leader of Africa’s most
populous nation, how many children he contributed to the population growth and
how many wives did he marry.
He added, “I thought, for me,
that was courageous; that leaders should not preach what they are not doing.
You can’t be on record as having so many wives, both registered and
unregistered, several children, some in dispute, and yet you go to the Queens
land and lecture about population.”
The APC National Chairman also
said an ex-president who is famous for writing letters, when asked a question
on corruption on the BBC Hard Talk, tried to make a distinction between the
president and the government.
“But the man said, but you have a
responsibility to enforce law and order. You made those laws, but you did not
enforce them. For me, talking about courage and professional hazards, that
would be. I am trying to imagine if anybody could have in this hall, asked him
such questions and then he finds his way to his Apo Village to go and sleep as
if nothing has happened,” Oshiomhole said.
But Wike, who is of the
opposition PDP, said Oshiomhole raised some issues which needed to be
addressed. He recalled Oshiomhole’s statement that leaders should practice what
they preached and not what they do not practice.
He recalled Oshiomhole’s visit to
the Presidential Villa to thank a former president for ensuring one man, one
vote.
“Today, do we have one man one
vote? So, you see, it is very, very important. As my leader, I expected that
when he had that opportunity to thank a president that said one man one vote,
you should have carried it along to make sure there is one man, one vote. So,
preach what you practice.”
Wike’s remarks drew thunderous
applause as he further lambasted the APC-led government for its breach on the
fundamental rights and freedoms of Nigerians.
He said when the APC was in
opposition, they enjoyed freedom to protest. He said there was the ‘Occupy
Nigeria’ protest where nobody was arrested, detained, jailed or court orders
disobeyed.
“Today, today, today, today! Are
they practising what they are preaching? So, it is very important for us to
know where we are. And we cannot be deceived by rhetoric, we cannot be deceived
by what we are seeing. All of us know; we’re not progressing. Rather, we’re
doing what? Retrogressing,” Wike added.
On his part, the National
Chairman of the PDP, Mr. Uche Secondus, decried the violence alleged to have
been perpetrated by APC at the Kogi election. He said the Certificate of Return
issued Governor Yahaya Bello by the Independent National Electoral Commission
(INEC) was blood-stained.
“We witnessed the (Kogi) governor
receive the Certificate of Return that is blood-stained. Then he took the
certificate to present to the president. That is blood stained. The woman burnt
alive is a symbol of democracy that has the right to vote,” Secondus said.
Returning to the podium,
Oshiomhole said President Muhammadu Buhari practised what he preached.
“Let me say to you sir, that the
Buhari’s government is practising what he is preaching and that the party he
represents (PDP) laid such dangerous foundation. But for people like me, I am
happy that you remember one man one vote. I launched it in Benin. Whether you
agree with me or not, it is on history and a lot of those who are here were
present and I said one man one vote, one woman one vote,” Oshiomhole said.
Oshiomhole said if there was any
state where blood rather than ink was used to thumb print, it was in Rivers.
He cited records by local and
international observers in Rivers election to substantiate his allegations.
“It is on record that it is only
in Rivers that election ballot papers are not distributed, guns are distributed
and military officers’ heads are chopped off. Troops, soldiers and police
chopped off. These are hard facts which show that one man, one vote had taken root
in so many places. I have no more work to do in Rivers,” Oshiomhole said.
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