Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Presidential Campaign Organisation has condemned in totality, the Wednesday’s unwarranted attack and use of brute force by the police against thousands of its supporters in Gumel, Jigawa State.
The attacks was said to have been instigated by agents of President Muhammadu Buhari and the All Progressives Congress (APC) to forcefully stop PDP rally in the state.
The Director of Media and Publicity, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan, in a statement Thursday said that it was now clear that the Presidency, have realized that its smear campaigns against PDP and its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, cannot change the resolve by Nigerians to vote out APC government.
He accused the APC and the Police of fomenting crises and violent attacks against its members, while cautioning that Nigerians might no longer continue to tolerate such incendiary acts ahead of the elections.
Ologbondiyan said, “The PPCO particularly condemns in totality, the Wednesday’s unwarranted attack and use of brute force, including firing of tear gas by the police against thousands of law-abiding members of the PDP in Gumel, Jigawa State, on instigation of agents of Buhari’s presidency and the APC to forcefully stop our rally in the state.
“The PPCO equally condemns the unprovoked invasion and violent attack on the Ondo State campaign office of the PDP presidential candidate, Abubakar Atiku, by armed thugs sponsored by the APC.
“This is in addition to series of other attacks by the APC and the police, including arresting and detaining our members on trumped-up charges, as well as pulling down our campaign materials in various states of the federation.
“We know that the Buhari’s presidency had to deploy brute force to disrupt our rally in Jigawa State when it realised that the rally will amplify and reinforce President Buhari and APC’s rejection, particularly in their supposed stronghold, the North-west.”
Ologbondiyan stressed that police now have the order to harass, intimidate and unleash violence on its members in a bid to intimidate and instill fear in our people across the nation
“This informed the ferociousness exhibited by the police in the Jigawa attack where many PDP members were manhandled, injured and traumatised by armed policemen despite the fact that our party obtained official permission from the Police and the Department of State Services (DSS) for the rally”, he added.
The main opposition party said it had it on good authority that the attack on its presidential campaign office in Ondo was coordinated by the APC, which is now in frenetic mode over the soaring popularity of the party and presidential candidate in the South-west geo-political zone.
