….Describes PDP National Chairman As A Mole
…..Advocates For The Zoning Of PDP Chairmanship To North Central
….Warns FG Against Allowing France, US To Establish Military Bases In Nigeria
The Northern Youth Leaders’ Forum (NYLF), on Wednesday expressed the fear that Nigeria is heading towards a one-party State, saying that this poses great danger to the nation’s democracy.
The NYLF National President, Comrade Afiyo Elliot, who stated this at a press conference in Abeokuta, Ogun State capital, called on the national Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Ambassador Umar Damagun to resign from his position over his failure in providing the needed “constructive criticisms” that could have guarantee checks and balances against the ruling political party that has been scheming to turn Nigeria into a one-party state.
Elliot, who titled his statement “It is time to save Nigeria”, called on the National Working Committee (NWC) or the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the PDP to either suspend or remove Damagun with another politician from the North Central Zone, arguing that the PDP acting National Chairman has compromised his position as leader of the opposition political voice against the All Progressives Congress (APC) led federal government.
He described the PDP national chairman as a mole, whose “money induced quietness” has been aiding the ruling APC to turn Nigeria into a one party state.
While stressing that NYLF was formed in 1994 to protect the northern interests within the national interest, Afiyo explained that his forum deliberately singled out the PDP having being the political party that had once govern the country and as such, “supposed to be the main opposition leader” that could have provided the APC-led federal government the needed opposition voice and save the Nigerian democracy from sliding into a dictatorial state “through a one-party system”.
“We are deeply concerned with the political scheming in the opposition parties, especially in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) which is geared towards the destruction of the party and consequently silencing the opposition.
“Plans are being carried out discreetly by some moles in the party to hijacking the structures of the party and completely silence their voices. We observed that despite the introduction of unfriendly policies by the government, a word has never come from the supposedly main opposition Party. Unfortunately, Nigerians are not talking nor observing the dangerous trend.
“It is in the light of this dangerous and unimaginable scheming and tendencies, that we are embarking on an awareness and enlightenment campaign to alert Nigerians on the dangers ahead if we allow these politicians to succeed in their machinations and manoeuvres”.
Afiyo however, called on other patriotic and well-meaning Nigerians, “irrespective of tribe, religion, geo-political or party affiliations”, to join his forum in the struggle towards ensuring that the planned destruction of the opposition political parties is completely brought to a halt.
“We are strongly convinced that it is
high time for patriotic Nigerians to arise and challenge the powers that are working against the very existence of Nigeria’s democratic principles and institutions in order to lead us into a one-party state so as to institutionalise and secure authoritarian and dictatorial system in Nigeria.
The Northern youths also called on the federal government to discontinue whatever negotiations with the American and French governments’ attempts at relocating any military base to Nigeria.
Afiyo explained that his forum has “convincing reasons, undeniable evidences and facts” that the federal government has been negotiating with the French and American governments towards relocating their military bases from the Republic of Niger to Nigeria, “precisely Sokoto or Kebbi States,
as a way of assuaging the American and French governments for the inability of Nigeria to mobilise the ECOWAS for a military onslaught or attack against Niger Republic”.
“We want to state clearly that the Northern youths will never allow a square meter of land in the entire North to be ceded to French or American governments under any guise or reason. If the federal government continues with this plan, then the government should be prepared to kill all of us”.
