Former president, Olusegun Obasanjo, has urged Nigerians to never allow themselves to forget the years when the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) badly mismanaged the country so as to prevent the same ‘ugliness’ from rising again.
While speaking at a press conference on Thursday, May 10, 2018, the former president, who led Nigeria between 1999 and 2007 on the platform of the PDP, said Nigerians may accpet the party’s recent apology but should never forget that the party set the country on a course of ruin.
In March, PDP national chairman, Uche Secondus, tendered an unreserved apology to Nigerians for the party’s failure to live up to expectations during its 16 years reign before the 2015 presidential election which was lost to Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives’ Congress (APC).
“The PDP was in power for 16 years and as expected, we made mistakes. We are sorry for our mistakes and when we return, we shall make this country better,” he said.
While speaking on Thursday, Obasanjo said the party’s apology is incomplete because it still has alleged sinners holding leadership positions without consequence.
He said, “Although PDP would seem to have realised its mistakes of its immediate past of the last eight years or so, its present evolution would, by itself, not give confidence to well-meaning Nigerians who are interested in a new Nigeria in the hands of God that will have leadership, governance, development and values within our culture as its guiding principles with the attributes of honesty, integrity, patriotism, love, unity, industry, incorruptibility, good neighbourliness, faithfulness, trust, courage and love and fear of God held aloft.
“PDP offered apology without disciplining those who set Nigeria on a course of ruin and some of them are still holding leadership roles in their party.
“Nigerians may forgive, but Nigerians should never forget; otherwise they will be suffering from amnesia and the same ugliness may raise its head again.”
Obasanjo’s movement adopts ADC
At the press conference, the Obasanjo announced that his Coalition for Nigeria Movement has adopted the African Democratic Congress (ADC) as its political platform to bring about desirable change in governance in the country.
The former president had birthed the movement in a scathing statement he made against the administration of President Buhari where he advised him to not seek re-election.
In the statement, he also expressed his lost hope in the ability of the ruling APC and the opposition PDP to provide Nigeria with the initiative it needs to progress. His solution to being free of the dominance of both parties was what he called the Coalition for Nigeria Movement.
According to him, the coalition will be a movement of all well-meaning Nigerians that will engage in democratic practices that will drive Nigeria forward and be a source of hope for all Nigerians for speedy, quality and equal development, security, unity, prosperity and progress.
The movement was officially launched in Abuja on January 31, 2018, with Obasanjo signing up as a member the next day.
Source: Pulse.ng
