The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has accused the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) of pushing Nigerians to desperation and death through its anti-people policies.
The party stated this while reacting to the death of 39 Nigerians during palliative distribution events in Anambra State and the Federal Capital Territory, as well as the tragic loss of 35 children at a funfair in Oyo State.
Speaking via a statement on Sunday, the PDP National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, described the events as heartbreaking, emphasising that despite Nigeria’s wealth of resources, citizens are left to struggle and die for food.
He said, “The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) describes the widespread food stampedes in the country as an ugly testament to the alarming levels of misery, poverty, hunger, starvation, hopelessness, and desperation for survival currently plaguing our nation under the overtly insensitive, corrupt, and rudderless Tinubu-led All Progressives Congress (APC) government.
“The party laments the tragic stampedes at private events in Oyo and Anambra States as well as the FCT, Abuja, which claimed the lives of about 60 vulnerable citizens, including children, who were desperately struggling for food as a result of pervasive hunger brought on by the APC’s anti-people policies.”
The PDP further accused the APC administration of wrecking the economy and deepening poverty to the point where Nigerians are driven to acts of desperation, including suicide and dangerous migration, in search of survival.
“It is heartbreaking that despite our abundant resources, Nigerians are subjected to agonising conditions where they die struggling for food,” Ologunagba said.
He condemned the APC as a party of “political vampires and buccaneers” who, he alleged, show no regard for human life and profit from citizens’ suffering.
Ologunagba criticised the government for failing to invest in agriculture and food production, which he said would alleviate hunger.
“This also explains why the APC administration has rejected all advice and suggestions by the PDP and other well-meaning Nigerians to review the hasty implementation of suffocating policies, including abrupt increases in petroleum prices and the floating of the naira, despite their crippling effect on the economy and citizens,” he noted.
The PDP also accused APC leaders of mismanaging resources, engaging in large-scale corruption, and diverting funds meant for public welfare into personal pockets through schemes like budget padding, contract inflation, and palliative racketeering.
Ologunagba called on Nigerians to hold the APC accountable for these tragedies, urging compensation for victims’ families and an immediate review of economic and tax policies to stem further suffering.