Chuks Okocha in Abuja
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has called for prosecution of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr. Boss Mustapha and others for violating COVID-19 safety regulations.
Mustapha, who is the chairman of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 pandemic, had on Saturday, led others to the burial of the Chief of Staff to the President, Mallam Abba Kyari in Abuja.
The SGF and others had violated health safety and social restriction directives issued by the federal government to contain the spread of COVID-19.
The SGF had since apologised on behalf of himself and other Presidency officials that attended the burial that breached COVID-19 protocols.
However, in a statement issued yesterday by the spokesman for the PDP, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan, the party rejected the apology tendered by the SGF.
The PDP said: “Our party understands that the apology came after widespread condemnation of the conduct of such government officials and other individuals at the funeral.
“The PDP describes as unfortunate that those who make and enforce rules over ordinary Nigerians were found directly violating the same rules with impunity, thereby compromising the efforts to check the spread of the pandemic in our country.
“Our party holds that the SGF and other government officials, including PTF members ought to have shown respect to the memory of Mallam Kyari by conducting themselves in a manner that should have served as a guide to other Nigerians in the fight against COVID-19.
“This, therefore, is not an act that an apology by the SGF will serve as enough, as it does not drive home the issue at stake to the public as well as to government officials.
“Consequently, the PDP charges the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) authorities, in line with its actions against ordinary Nigerians who had flouted the rules, to immediately prosecute all government functionaries involved in this violation.
“Nigerians had all watched how the FCT prosecuted residents at various mobile courts across the territory. Justice would therefore only be done and of course, seen to have been done, if the FCT toes the same line in this instance.
“Nigeria as a nation is governed by the constitution in which all Nigerians are deemed equal before the law. Our officials must learn to respect rules made and enforced by them, particularly at this trying time”.
