THE Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has accused President Muhammadu Buhari of disguising his private visit to the United Kingdom as official.
The party said that it is instructive to note that President Buhari left the country on Monday, April 9, 2018, for London and arrived his destination same day but has not conducted a single business of government 72 hours after his arrival in UK.
A statement issued by Kola Ologbondiyan, National Publicity Secretary of the party in Abuja on Thursday observed that more astonishing is the fact that President Buhari did not transmit a letter to the National Assembly indicating that he was going on a week’s vacation ahead of the Commonwealth Heads of Government (CHOGM).
PDP, therefore, demanded that the National Assembly should save the nation from an imminent constitutional crisis by immediately commencing processes to address the current power vacuum in the country, following President Buhari’s decision to embark on a private trip abroad without officially transmitting power to the Vice President.
It said: “The intervention of the federal legislature has become a national imperative, as the President’s action has put the nation in clear danger.
“Nigeria is at the moment bereft of statutory leadership, including the apparatus of security command, particularly as President Buhari had not indicated a date of return to the country.
“The PDP and of course, Nigerians at large, are particularly worried that in the event of any national emergency, there is no sitting commander-in-chief to take charge.
“It is incontrovertible that President Buhari is on a private trip to the United Kingdom (UK) as he was not received on arrival, by the government of that country; has not had any contact with the British Prime Minister, Theresa May or any high officials of the UK government and has not conducted any official business since his arrival to the country on Monday.
“Since Monday, President Buhari has been holidaying in London and has been unable to discharge the functions of his Office, in total disregard to the provisions of the Nigerian Constitution, disdain to Nigerians and flagrant abuse of his presidential office.
“By embarking on this vacation and abdicating his official functions without transmitting a written declaration to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and holding on to power while on vacation, President Buhari acted in gross violation of Section 145 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
“We know that Mr President is billed to attend the CHOGM meeting scheduled to hold between April 16 and 20, but has been in London since Monday attending to private matters, while the ship of state is left bare of statutory leadership as nobody even knows when he is due to return to the country.
“Nigerians will recall that the PDP had earlier demanded the President to issue a full disclosure on the nature, scope and duration of the private aspect of President Buhari’s trip, a request, they blatantly ignored, in total disdain to the sensibilities of Nigerians.
“The PDP and lovers of democracy in Nigeria are particularly miffed that in the desperation to hold power, President Buhari chose to observe the provisions of the constitution in the breach, thereby endangering our dear nation.”
The main opposition party, therefore, charged the National Assembly to immediately come to the rescue and invoke relevant sections of our constitution and statutory books to address this power vacuum that is capable of derailing our democracy.
The party advised President Buhari to admit that he has failed woefully in his promise to end the insurgency in the country, instead of always resorting to excuses, particularly in the international arena.
The party said by running to Archbishop Justin Welby to declare that the insurgents and marauders pillaging our people are fighters from late Muammah Gadaffi’s Libya, President Buhari confirmed the position of Nigerians that he is incapable of handling the security challenges of our nation.
PDP invited Nigerians to recall that in November 2017, President Buhari had informed the Nigerian community in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire that Gadaffi’s fighters were responsible for the escalation of Boko Haram insurgency.
A separate issued by the party spokesman said: “This time, Mr President has revealed that the killer-herdsmen ravaging our nation and killing our people are from Libya.
“If the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led Federal Government knew all these while that the marauders and insurgents are invaders, then why is it engaging them in dialogue, reportedly paying ransoms and even considering the amnesty option for them.
“In the same vein, Nigerians should demand explanations from President Buhari on why his administration has been asking the victims of marauders’ attacks in various states, particularly, Benue, Taraba, Kogi, Nasarawa, Zamfara, Plateau, among others, to learn to accommodate, if it knows that the attackers had links with Libya.
“Our take remains that President Buhari and his dysfunctional APC should simply admit that they have failed to safeguard the lives of our people as well as the territorial integrity of our nation.
“We, therefore, urge Nigerians to continue to be at alert and support one another in this trying time, irrespective of ethnicity, creed or class, as we collectively work to salvage our nation from the misrule of the incompetent APC, come 2019.
“As a party, we are already working on resetting the agenda of our nation and we are determined to reinvent the wheel of our national fortunes.”