The Tanimu Turaki-led faction of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) criticised President Bola Tinubu’s Independence Day message, accusing the president of presenting himself and his administration as “Moses” leading Nigerians out of economic hardship.
But the faction loyal to Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, said the future of the country remained bright, saying Nigerians must not despair.
The Turaki faction described Tinubu as “the Pharaoh” pursuing Nigerians through a “Red Sea of economic pain”, stating that the hardship being experienced by citizens has worsened under the All Progressives Congress (APC) administration.
National Publicity Secretary of the PDP Interim National Working Committee, Comrade Ini Ememobong, made the position known in an Independence Day statement.
Reacting to the president’s Independence Day message, Ememobong said the reference to the Biblical Israelites’ journey through the Red Sea in the president’s message amounted to an attempt to portray Tinubu as Moses leading Nigerians from “slavery to freedom”.
He said the economic realities facing citizens presented a different picture.
PDP quoted the presidency as acknowledging that, by 2023, “poverty was rising, and hope was nearly gone,” but stated that many Nigerians now believed their circumstances had become worse since May 29, 2023.
“Yes, Mr. President says Nigerians should not look back, because he knows that is where the truth is,” the party said, adding that citizens are instead confronted with higher costs of rent, transportation and education.
However, the Wike-led PDP, in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Jungudo Mohammed, urged Nigerians to continue to preach peace, unity, and national cohesion.
It also charged Nigerians to honour the sacrifices of the country’s founding fathers and all those who had contributed to national development.
It stated, “The PDP acknowledges that, as a nation and as a people, we are not yet where we aspire to be. However, we must not despair. The future of Nigeria remains bright, and our collective hope must remain stronger than our present challenges.
“Nigeria is a blessed nation, endowed with enormous human and natural resources. Let us harness these resources, alongside our rich ethnic, cultural and religious diversity, into an instrument of unity, creativity and national progress.
“The PDP, therefore, calls on all Nigerians to continue to preach peace, unity and national cohesion. Our leaders and followers alike must remain patriotic, reject violence and corruption, and always place the interests of Nigeria above personal and sectional considerations.”
The Wike group said, “Above all, let us build a nation where our young people can dream, aspire and look to the future with confidence and hope,” the statement read in part.”
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