SAN FRANCISCO, September 13, (THEWILL) – The All Progressives Congress, APC, has berated Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara for defecting to the main opposition party, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, ahead of the 2019 general elections.
Dogara formally dumped the APC this week when he picked PDP nomination forms for the House of Representatives, confirming weeks of speculation that he would dump his party following a protracted distrust between himself, party leaders and the Presidency.
The APC in a statement by its spokesman, Mr. Yekini Nabena said his defection confirms a recent comment by President Muhammadu Buhari, which described defectors from the party as “The weakest people whose senses of expectation do not align with our vision have exited our Party”.
He boasted that Dogara would be roundly defeated by the APC candidate at the election in his Bauchi federal constituency.
The rest of the statement reads: “Dogara’s reported defection has not come to us as a surprise. It was only a matter of time judging by Dogara’s anti-party antics in the National Assembly where in connivance with the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, he exploited all available avenues to sabotage and undermine the APC-led executive. Dogara’s anti-party activities which enabled one of the opposition Party’s sole victory in Bogoro Local Government Area (Dogara’s council) during the recent Bauchi South Senatorial bye-election won by the APC is another pointer, among several others.
Indeed, all politics is local. As a Party, we empathise with Dogara on his confusion and despair over his bleak political future given the fact that he is not on ground and a political paperweight in his home Bauchi state. In his emergence as Speaker, Dogara was merely used by his political master to achieve their selfish political ends at the time. They have since moved on to pursue their individual political aspirations and left Dogara in the cold.
We would advise Dogara against his ill-advised decision to recontest his House of Representatives seat under the opposition Party he is linked with because a crushing and humiliating defeat surely awaits him.
As a Party, we remain united and committed to our Progressives ideologies. We urge Party faithful to consolidate on our strengths and collectively go into the 2019 general elections as a united and strong political fighting force to sustain the Change Agenda we are implementing for the benefit of Nigerians.”
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