THE Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) says the All Progressive Congress (APC) and the Federal Government are avoiding the main issued it raised on the looters list.

The government and the APC had while reacting to the apology the PDP tendered to Nigerians urged the opposition party to return resources it looted while in power as a mark of genuine penitence.

Information Minister, Lai Mohammed spoke for the government while APC National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, spoke for the ruling party. The duo made their positions known in separate press statements.

Mr. Mohammed said “The PDP presided over an unprecedented looting of the public treasury, perhaps the worst of its kind in Nigeria or anywhere else in the world. Therefore, the best evidence of penitence for such a party is not just to own up and apologize, but to also return the looted funds. Anything short of that is mere deceit.


For the APC Mr. Abdullahi noted that, “The All Progressives Congress (APC) acknowledges the apologies by the Peoples Democracy Party (PDP) for the damage the party has wrought on the country’s democratic fabric during its sixteen-year rule.

“However, despite this belated grovelling apology, PDP will need to come clean, confess to their sins and fully atone for it, before restitution is considered.”

But the opposition party fired urging the APC to return all the stolen funds it used to finance the election of President Muhammadu Buhari.

The government then said it will not stop talking about the corruption in its preceding administration.

The PDP responded by urging the government to name members in its fold who amassed wealth through illegal means while it was in power.

The opposition party had advised it to keep quiet if it could not do so.

Responding, the government through its Information Minister, Lai Mohammed, said, “Let’s just give them a teaser with this list: PDP Chairman Uche Secondus, On the 19th of Feb 2015, he took N200 million only from the office of then NSA, Then PDP Financial Secretary, On the 24th of Oct 2014, he took N600 million only from the office of then NSA, then National Publicity Secretary Olisah Metuh, on trial for collecting N1.4b from the office of then NSA.”

So far, Secondus and Metuh are seeking legal means to address the inclusion of their names in the list.

On Sunday, the government released another version of list containing 24 names of those who allegedly looted while the PDP were in power.

Responding, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in a chat with The Nation accused the government of avoiding the issue it raised on the looters’ list.

“The APC, the federal government and Alhaji Lai Mohammed are being desperate and they are dodging issues. We have raised the issue that where did they raise funds for President Muhammadu Buhari’s 2015 presidential campaign.

“That is the question for which Nigerians are waiting for answers. All these names they are bandying about are in the public domain. Most of the cases are in court.

“They are mere allegations and according to the Nigerian Constitution, you are innocent until proven guilty. So if you are bandying allegations. It’s just a mere list. It don’t hold water.

“The question Nigerians are asking is that Buhari said he was an insolvent person, that he didn’t have money before the 2015 elections. So where did he get the money he used for his 2015 presidential election?,” the spokesman of the PDP, Kola Ologbondiyan queried.

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deantimes:
For APC led government to be responding to anything PDP says shows that they are afraid of the opposition.