2027: APC in panic mode, shopping for endorsements -PDP
By Ndukaku Ihe
The Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP), has said that the All Progressives Congress ( APC), is in panic, ahead of the 2027, and has allegedly resorted to shopping for endorsements for President Bola Tinubu.
The PDP national publicity secretary, Debo Ologunagba, who stated this at an interactive session with journalists, at the Wadata Plaza, Monday, said the ruling party, as well as the Federal Government, is jittery that the major opposition party was bouncing back.
Ologunagba accused the APC of running the country based on lies and propaganda, noting that the present administration has failed to provide for the welfare and security of the people as enshrined in the 1999 Constitution ( as amended).
Consequently, he said that the APC is panicky about the stability of the PDP and now allegedly organizing groups to endorse President Tinubu for the 2027 polls.
Recall that recently some interest groups have endorsed the President for the 2027 election, with the latest being a group of former National Assembly members, who pledged support for the re-election of President Tinubu in the next general election.
Nonetheless, the PDP spokesman said if the present administration has done well, it will rather allow its achievements speak for it, than allegedly shopping for endorsements.
According to him, “the purpose of government is the welfare and security of the people. The APC has failed on that. We are poised to return to government, that is why we are getting our acts together, like a movement, so that every member of the party had the same common goal. And we are happy about that.
“The recalibration of our party in the last three months, when we began to put our acts together, has sent so much jitters to the Presidency and of course to President Tinubu. And that is why you see the rush and anxiety to begin to have what we describe as abandonment of government for early campaigns; clearly against the electoral act.
“We are all witnesses to even the frustration of INEC, where they declared that this early campaign and heating up the polity, such that even as regulators they are worried. The reason for this behavior is that the APC, President Tinubu is jittery about the recalibration of this party.
“And the fact that the PDP that is well known to Nigeria, back on the saddle, doing what it knows how to do best, which is reconciliation, getting people together, that is why he is jittery. That is why you find that they are beginning to campaign less than two years to the next elections, where what they do is what I call endorsement shopping; where the President and the APC are looking for endorsement.
“If indeed, the president is doing well and the APC is succeeding, let your work speak for you. You don’t need to tell people come and endorse me.
“It is the panic stage. The fact that they are not doing well. That they have failed and they recognize that Nigerians fully knows that this APC has failed the country. Endorsement is not on the pages of newspaper. Endorsement is from the people. And people cannot feed their family.”
Nevertheless, Ologunagba stated that there must be legal framework for the electronic transmission of election result, ahead of the 2027 polls.
According to him, it is curious that while Point of Sale ( POS) machines, as well as Automated Teller Machines ( ATM) works in all parts of the country, there were stories of glitches with the deployment of BIVAS machines, in the 2023 polls.
Therefore, he said the PDP will lead the campaign for a legal framework for electronic transmission of election before the next general election.
“We as a party are going to take the charge. Nigerians will not listen to any story about a glitch. There must be none because the infrastructure in the country today can support it. If you can support POS in the remotest part of this country, INEC should be on notice in that election.
“2027 must be seamless, it must be free, fair, transparent and there must be no glitches. We as a party, will lead the charge in this country to ensure that the process is credible and that any attempt to abridge the rights of Nigerians to choose their own leaders of course will be resisted,” Ologunagba added.
