UN rapporteur: accept the bitter truth and seek for help – PDP tells Buhari

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Saturday advised President Muhammadu Buhari to accept the alleged bitter truth over the report by the United Nations (UN) Rapporteur, saying that various forms of insecurity have escalated under his administration.

It also told Buhari to seek for help, alleging that the Buhari administration has no solution to the alleged festering problems in the country.

This was contained in a statement by the party’s spokesman, Kola Ologbondiyan in Abuja.

According to the statement, “Buhari should show humility and accept the bitter truth that poverty, internal conflicts, bloodletting, banditry, kidnapping, insurgency, abuse of human rights and general national insecurity have escalated under his divisive, vindictive and repressive  administration.

“The party says instead of embarking on ego trip and picking a fight with the United Nation (UN) Rapporteur, Agnes Callamard, for highlighting the grave security issues in our country, which are already in the international domain, the Buhari Presidency should be seeking for help, seeing that it has no solution to the festering problem.

“If anything, the UN Rapporteur report only reinforces the positions of credible international bodies including the United States Department of State, Amnesty International (AI) and Transparency International (TI) which also reported cases of arbitrary and extra-judicial killings, illegal arrests, arbitrary detention, torture, festering violence, reported disappearances and abuse of human rights under the Buhari administration.

The PDP further holds that the UN report is a vindication of its stance as well as that of millions of Nigerians that the ineptitude and repressive tendencies of the All Progressives Congress (APC) administration under President Buhari are emboldening acts on violence and fuelling impunity, division and intolerance in the polity.

“Today, Nigeria is becoming one of the most insecure places to live. Citizens can no longer move freely around their country as marauders, kidnappers, insurgents and bandits take over the highways, pillage communities, kill and take citizens captive at will”.

Further, PDP alleged that the Buhari Presidency would be doing a great disservice to Nigerians especially those in communities are being ravaged by insurgency, banditry, kidnapping and ethnic clashes should it fight persons and organisations that tell the truth rather than seeking solutions.

Also, the PDP holds that at the moment, what ought to be paramount to the Buhari Presidency should not be the sentiments of regime image but the welfare and security of vulnerable Nigerians.

It, therefore, cautioned Buhari’s handlers on their alleged unguarded statements on grave national issues.

Ologbondiyan added, “Buhari should immediately accept responsibility for his failures and seek help since he has not demonstrated the capacity to effectively led a nation as complex as Nigeria at the moment.

“The truth can be bitter, but in its acceptance lies the solution”.