The Labour Party (LP) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate in the 2023 election, Atiku Abubakar, has slammed President Bola Tinubu, over his recent statement that Nigerians were not the only ones suffering from poverty.
The LP National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh, in an interview with Vanguard, accused Tinubu of mocking Nigerians with the statement.
He said the President needed to be reminded that he was in office to reduce, if not eliminate, poverty and not exacerbate it.
Ifoh urged Tinubu to halt the mockery and consider security, including the welfare of the populace, a priority.
He said, “We are disappointed but not surprised by the comments made by President Ahmed Bola Tinubu about the excruciating poverty his administration’s policies have unleashed on Nigerians since he took office over a year ago.
“It was to say the least, disheartening to hear Mr. President mock his citizens by saying Nigerians are not the only ones facing poverty.
“Assuming but not conceding that what he said is true, Nigerians who are at the receiving end of his harsh economic policies don’t need to be reminded about the pain and hunger they have been forced to live with by the very people who put them in that situation in the first place.
“May be this administration needs to be reminded that it was elected to reduce if not eliminate poverty, hunger and disease but what we have seen is an obsession with opulence.
“We are yet to get over the billions appropriated for the renovation of the President and Vice President’s lodges, now we hear they want new jets to join the Presidential fleet.
“Our schools and health institutions are on their knees, the same government claims it cannot afford to pay public servants a living wage but has enough to make itself comfortable at the expense of the suffering masses.
“Mr. President, we implore you to uphold the constitution you swore to protect. The constitution says the security and welfare of the populace shall be the primary purpose of the existence of your government. Enough is this mockery.”
Similarly, Atiku, while speaking through his Special Adviser, Paul Ibe, accused Tinubu of deepening the poverty in the country.
He further said President Tinubu and his administration are insensitive to the plight of the masses.
He said, “There are little or no values nurtured and promoted by Tinubu and his administration. What Nigerians are seeing it manifest is insensitivity, bigotry, nepotism, corruption, and wastfulness.
“For the President to speak about us finding a way to eliminate banditry and terrorism is an acknowledgement of failure.
“ What we expect to hear from him are the measures and the strategy to deal with the menace and not to regale us with the problems that we are all well aware of.
“The poverty in Nigeria is multidimensional. It was exacerbated by the policies of the Tinubu administration that does not priotise production and cutting costs.
“Policies that were not well thought out and are only aimed at pauperizing the citizens. Tinubu’s trial-and-error policies have continued to dig the country deeper into economic degradation.
“ His government is characterised by a lack of transparency and accountability. For example, his administration is paying for subsidy, contrary to the claims that it is gone for good.
“According to his minister of finance, last year (the very same year they allegedly stopped payment of subsidy), Tinubu paid a subsidy of N3.6 trillion and this year, he is projected to pay a subsidy of N5.4 trillion.
“Why are they lying about this other than to divert money away from the Federation Account. Truth be told, Tinubu is the one causing the deepening poverty in the country.”