Tasks Buhari on Kogi killings
Chuks Okocha in Abuja
Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday rejected the over 200 per cent increase in electricity tariff announced by the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led administration, describing it as draconian and completely against the interest and well-being of Nigerians.
Also the main opposition party has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to re-jig the nation’s security apparatchik to enable it meet up with the rising security challenges in the country.
PDP also called on security agencies in the state to beef up security in the areas as well as take up the challenge to track down the killers.
The party, in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbodiyan, charged the federal government to immediately rescind the obnoxious and provocative policy and consult further with Nigerians before any such tariff hike.
PDP described the increase in electricity tariff as a furtherance of the fleecing of Nigerians, who were already over-burdened and groaning under the weight of high costs, economic repression and heavy taxes foisted by the alleged insensitive APC administration.
Also, PDP said it’s lamentable that Nigerians, who were already suffering the devastating negative impact of the recent increase in the Value Added Tax (VAT) from five per cent to 7.5 per cent by the APC administration, were now being further suppressed with increased electricity tariff.
“Our party holds that the increase in electricity tariff, under the prevailing harsh economic conditions, is injurious to the well-being of Nigerians as it will further stress the productive sector and lead to an upsurge in the cost of regular and essential goods and services, including food, medicine, housing, education and other critical needs.
“This APC policy, if allowed, will worsen the suffering of Nigerians as it will put more stress on already over-burdened families, cripple businesses, result in job losses and exacerbate the prevailing frightening unemployment rate under the Buhari administration,” the opposition party alleged.
PDP urged Nigerians to note the toxic and distasteful “new year gift” by the APC administration at a time Nigerians were coming back from yuletide festivities, alleging that APC was indeed unfeeling, insensitive and has no iota of regard for the sensibilities and well-being of the citizenry.
The main opposition party insisted that any administration that has the interest of the people at heart should provide alternatives or hold consultations with the people before imposing such harsh tariff on its
citizenry.
The party therefore urged the National Assembly to rescue Nigerians from such draconian policy by deploying its statutory legislative instruments to call the federal government to order in the interest of our nation.
Meanwhile, PDP yesterday in condemning the killing of about 23 innocent Nigerians by marauders in Tawari Community in Kogi State tasked the Buhari administration to re-jig the security apparatchik to meet with the challenges in the country, while describing the killings as dastardly and completely unacceptable.
The party urged the President to live up to his billings and take a decisive step to end the prevalent killing and bloodletting in the country instead of resorting to issuing pointless press releases and condolence messages without corresponding action to end the scourge.
The PDP noted that the invasion of the helpless Tawari community and the killing spree, which reportedly lasted unrepressed for several hours, despite earlier security apprehensions in the area, pointed to government’s direct negligence to its primary duty to protect the people.
It blamed the unabated killing and violence in various parts of the country on security lapses under the present administration as well as the manifest failure of the Buhari-led federal government to decisively track down and prosecute killers and perpetrators of violence in our country.
“Our party recalls that no decisive steps have been taken to prosecute the perpetrators of mass killings that shook our nation in Benue, Kaduna, Katsina, Bauchi, Taraba, Yobe, Zamfara, Kano, Niger, Rivers, Ebonyi, Abia and of course Kogi states, under the APC administration.
“It is indeed disheartening that the APC administration is now trying to reduce the functions of the office of the Commander-in-Chief of our nation to issuing press releases and condolences message each time marauders invade communities and massacre defenceless compatriots, instead of tracking down and dealing with the perpetrators.
“Such failures by government embolden killers, insurgents, marauders and kidnappers who have now virtually taken over our highways and holding citizens hostage in their homes, forests and caves,” PDP said.
The party noted that it’s standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Nigerians to demand an immediate step to end wanton killings and blood-letting in the country.
“Our nation cannot afford to continue to be a large funeral palour and a country where citizens have to contend daily with the fear and pain of death.
“Our party therefore charges President Buhari to brace up, heed the cries of Nigerians and immediately re-jig his security architecture by injecting new blood into the system,” it said.
While commending the patriotism of the gallant troops at the warfronts, PDP insisted that the security administration must be re-jigged to ensure an effective confrontation of the security reality across the nation.
PDP also commiserated with the victims and families of those killed in the Tawari attack and blood-lettings in other parts of the country.
The party called on security agencies in the state to beef up security in the areas as well as take up the challenge to track down the killers
