By Chuks Okocha
Following the increase in electricity tariffs and the pump price of petrol, the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Prince Uche Secondus has urged President Mohammadu Buhari and the leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to put the fear of God in the management of the affairs of the country, reminding them that they were not voted into power to punish Nigerians.
He also reminded the ruling party that it is in power to alleviate the sufferings of the people.
The PDP National chairman who spoke yesterday in Abuja at a programme organised by the party, titled, “Super Praise in Acknowledgement of God’s faithfulness to PDP,” called on Buhari to always be humble and have the fear of God in the management of the affairs of Nigeria.
He said, “I call upon the President to be humble and have the fear of God in the management of the affairs of the country. People are suffering. Be humble; let your government have human face. You are president to address the sufferings of Nigerians, alleviate the sufferings and not to add to the plights of the people that you were elected to govern.
“Power is ephemeral; it doesn’t last forever. I ask why are leaders so arrogant? Whether it is the APC or the PDP, political office is ephemeral. It does not last forever. We (PDP) have been there. PDP lost power in 2015. We should bear in mind that a political party or a president is not God.
“Where is the almighty General Sani Abacha today? Where is Saddam Hussein? Where is the so- called strong man of Libya, Gaddafi? These are lessons that power is ephemeral and don’t last forever. We should be humble and have the fear of God in whatever we do. People are suffering. Governance should not be seen as a means to inflict hardship on the people through government policies. Government must have human face,” Secondus charged.
He said that the only thing in this world that is permanent is man’s relationship with God, as, “we must be called to account for our lives on earth”.
Secondus said that he recalled when he apologised to Nigerians on a live television on the perceived mistakes of the PDP, explaining that he did so because PDP as a party is managed by mortal beings, who are subject to make mistakes.
According to him, “some people were not happy for the apology I tendered on behalf of the party, but 1 say to you, a party is not God. We, as members, are human and therefore subject to mistakes. The good thing in life is when you make a mistake, the lesson is that you don’t repeat such a mistake. The PDP as a party has learnt it’s lessons and by the grace of God, when we come to power, such mistakes will not be repeated. This is the essence of my apology to Nigerians on a live telecast that we are not above mistakes. “
