I read a release authored by the state Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress Akwa Ibom state chapter, wherein he demanded an unreserved apology from the state government to the president over the comments credited to a media aide of the Governor against the president and a punishment for the ‘culprit’.
This position is not only ridiculous and hypocritical, but it defines the very foundational existence of that unholy amalgam of political power grabbers called a political party, for lack of better expression. This party majors in doublespeak, deceit and playing by different rules. How else do you explain a party that celebrates a presidential aide who spins and spews transparent lies against a Governor of his home state, but demands an apology from a journalist (who is currently in the employ of the state government) for stating an obvious fact as his personal opinion? Recently at a drama staged by this party at Uyo township stadium, the clapped like thunder, when an overpriced clown in the corridors of power circulated documents incoherently cobbled to deceive unsuspecting listeners, but refused to look at and spot the difference in the pictures of the presidential cows in 2015 and 2017. The only picture absent from that post was that of the average Nigerian as at 2015 and today.
However, as a responsible government, the Governor’s spokesperson issues a statement aptly describing the post as the personal opinion of the author, acting as a Nigerian and journalist and not as a Governor’s aide, this was followed by an apology cum explanation by the gentleman himself. These unsolicited acts by the estimation of any reasonable unbiased person are more than sufficient. The follow-up statement by the APC on the matter is therefore most vexatious and unreasonable.
If we argue in the alternative and agree with their position that the opinion expressed by the Governor’s aide was a representation of the Governor’s disposition towards the president, then it will be safe to conclude as follows:
1. That all the positions expressed by Sen. Ita Enang are the words of President Buhari using the mouth of Ita.
2. That the confession of Alh. Lai Mohammed to Richard Quest that Nigerian jollof rice wasn’t the best, was a presidential condemnation of the culinary capacity of the entire country.
3. That the slips made the minister of sports about monies being spended and the non-budgetary provisions for winners of a football competition were the direct words of the president spoken through the minister.
In their reasoning, it is therefore safe to conclude that once a person is an agent of a known principal, all his words and actions must be admitted without further argument or proof, as the mirror of the mind of his principal and liability should lie directly to his principal.
But let us even test the truth quotient of the APC by asking them to take a look at the pictures of the cows posted by the gentleman and answer the following questions:
1. Do they cows in 2017 not look better than those in 2015?
2. Is our economy better in 2017 than it was in 2015?
3. Are Nigerians faring better today than they did in 2015?
Nigerians cannot forget how this party that now seeks to prohibit hate speech, cruised into the Presidential Villa, transported in a limousine of hate speech, insults cum utter disrespect for the office of the President and deceit. Before they demand for an apology from the state government, they should tender their apologies to Nigerians first.
Comrade Ini Ememobong, Publicity Secretary, Akwa Ibom State Chapter of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
