State governors elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, on Monday said Nigeria under the leadership of President Bola Tinubu’s All Progressives Congress-led Federal Government was almost on the path to becoming like Venezuela.
Venezuela is currently facing challenges such as political corruption, persistent scarcities of food and medicine, shutdowns of businesses, high unemployment rates, decreased productivity, violations of human rights, severe economic mismanagement, and heavy reliance on oil, all of which have exacerbated the crisis.
There has been a notable increase in abduction cases and various other crimes in Abuja and other regions of Nigeria recently.
Additionally, prices of foodstuffs have been rising, making it challenging for the majority of Nigerians to afford.
To address the economic and security challenges, the PDP governors renewed their call for state police and urged the Federal Government to tackle the declining value of the naira.
The governors, who made the call after their meeting at the Oyo State Governor’s Lodge in Asokoro, Abuja, on Monday, said they were committed to revamping and repositioning the PDP to serve as an effective opposition to the ruling party in Nigeria.
The Chairman of the Forum and Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed, who described the party as the most democratic party, said, “What we are doing is providing constructive criticism of the Federal Government’s objectionable policies.
“But at the beginning of this administration, we supported the removal of subsidy. We believed that there were safeguards in place and that if we made collective decisions, we should abide by them. However, we have now witnessed a free fall of the naira.
“The cost of living is skyrocketing, and we are almost on the road to becoming like Venezuela. So, we are offering concrete opposition without insulting anybody. Ultimately, the decision rests squarely with Nigerians and other organs in the country to ensure that we take actions that will bring relief to all of us.”
Mohammed disclosed that the PDP governors will work closely with the APC-led Federal Government in a manner that will provide some relief to people at the grassroots level.
“The rising cost of living is not solely the responsibility of the Federal Government. We have been collaborating with them to ensure that we avoid any distractions, but the monetary and economic policies are squarely the responsibility of the Federal Government,” he noted.
Governors in attendance were Vice-Chairman, PDP Governors Forum, Siminalayi Fubara (Rivers State); host, Seyi Makinde (Oyo State); Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri (Adamawa State); Caleb Mutfwang (Plateau State); Dauda Lawal (Zamfara State); Kefas Agbu (Taraba State); Godwin Obaseki (Edo State); Deputy Governor of Enugu State; and Deputy Governor of Delta State, Monday John Onyeme – Delta State.
