The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has expressed dismay over President Muhammadu Buhari’s reported violation of his own executive regulation on COVID-19, which provides for a 6-month jail term for defaulters.
The PDP in a statement by its national publicity secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan asserted that “it is a huge national embarrassment and gross failure of leadership that President Buhari, who ought to lead by example, is being reported of publicly violating the COVID-19 regulation, which he signed just five days ago.
“It is indeed scandalous that while Nigerians are striving to obey the COVID-19 regulation, which stipulates the compulsory wearing of nose mask and physical distancing in the public, they are being confronted with reports of open violation of the law by Mr. President at the All Progressives Congress (APC)’s membership revalidation exercise in his hometown, Daura, Katsina state on Saturday.
“The media is awash with reports and pictures of Mr. President in public, discussing with his party leaders at the event without putting on a nose mask or maintaining social distancing as stipulated by the new law.
“Such disregard to law and rules, which have characterized the Buhari Presidency and the APC, is largely responsible for the failure of leadership under the Buhari-led APC administration in the last five years.
“Moreover, this development has further shown that the Buhari Presidency and the APC are more interested in partisan politics than the health and wellbeing of our nation.
“We ask, with this violation, does the Buhari administration and its officials still have the rectitude to enforce sanctions on any other defaulter in the absence of necessary regrets by President Buhari and his party, the APC?
“In this regard the onus lies on President Buhari and the APC to clean up the mess by tendering an unreserved apology to Nigerians and take steps to observe necessary regrets over this violation.
“Furthermore, the PDP, as a law-abiding party, urges Nigerians not to emulate such examples, but continue to exert themselves in observing all COVID-19 protocols placed to check the spread of the pandemic in our country”.
