Former presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Dumebi Kachikwu, has described the coalition movement which adopted his party as a gang of politicians seeking to rescue themselves from the harsh economic realities which they created for the nation.
He added that behind the coalition cannot survive outside of political office.
Kachikwu also took on former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, alleging that his antecedents showed he doesn’t believe anyone from the southern part of Nigeria is deserving of being president of the country.
In a statement yesterday, Kachikwu said, “What we have here today is a gang unable to survive outside political office seeking to hijack the ADC as a means to revive their personal economies. They are truly on a rescue mission, but it is a mission to rescue themselves from the harsh economic realities which they themselves created for our nation.”
Dismissing accusations that he is a paid spokesman of President Bola Tinubu, Kachikwu, accused the coalition leaders of “offering some of the state chairmen as much as N20,000,000 to resign their positions which goes to show that their intentions are not honourable.”
He continued, “My question to this gang is this, if you succeed in paying off all the ADC party officials at state and local government levels to resign, what next? Our constitution still doesn’t allow you assume those offices.”
He further alleged that the coalition is staging events in different parts of the country where they pay poor Nigerians to say they are decamping from other parties to the ADC.
“This is the typical strategy of these old politicians, and we have had enough of it. They need to sing a new song.”
Kachikwu accused the former vice president, Atiku, of orchestrating the coalition charade for his personal benefit.
He said, “Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, a man whose antecedents clearly shows he doesn’t believe anyone from the southern part of Nigeria is deserving of being president of Nigeria orchestrated this charade for his personal benefit.
“He almost truncated President Obasanjo’s return for a second term because he believed the seat was his. President Jonathan suffered the same fate and then after eight years of late President Buhari as President, the same Atiku believed it was morally right for him to be the presidential flag bearer of the PDP in the last presidential elections.
“This was most unjust and unfair and led to the current disintegration of that party. He is now using some charlatans to deceive former governor Peter Obi that only he Atiku has what it takes to win an election because he can get majority of the North to vote for him. This is most uncharitable of him. If the former Vice President says my assertions are not true and that all he wants is a better Nigeria, I then challenge him today to publicly declare that equity demands that the presidency should stay in the South for another six years. He can then support any southern candidate of his choice. He will never do this but if he chooses to continue on this slippery slope, I want to reiterate that the ADC is not for sale and is not an old people’s home. We are a party that believes Nigeria needs fresh faces, fresh ideals and fresh ideas. This current political war is the war of the old for the old; it is not our fight,” he said.
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