A national leader of the All Progressives Congress and former Governor of Lagos State, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has described the Peoples Democratic Party as a bankrupt party.
Tinubu, who spoke in reaction to a statement by the PDP that the presidential candidate of the APC, Muhammadu Buhari, was fronting for him (Tinubu), said the party in power at the centre and in most of the 36 states of the federation was trying to equate itself with the APC.
The National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Olisa Metuh, had levelled the allegation that Buhari was fronting for Tinubu.
Metuh said it was Tinubu that the candidate of the PDP for the presidential election, President Goodluck Jonathan, would be confronting and not Buhari.
In a statement by his Media Office on Monday, Tinubu said Buhari emerged as the presidential flag bearer of the APC “because of his sterling qualities”.
He said the process that produced Buhari was also free and fair as attested to by many.
The statement said: “General Muhammadu Buhari was selected at the APC National Convention because of his sterling qualities.
“He is a man of principle and his commitment to the nation is undisputed.
“His overriding concern is the well-being of Nigeria.
“A man of such principle and leadership presence can never be a puppet.
“Those who claim he is a puppet do grave insult to an outstanding patriot and millions of Nigerians who support him.”
Tinubu advised the PDP to face its internal issues rather than dabbling into those of others.
Describing the PDP as a “rickety ship”, Tinubu said anyone who does not feel safe in the party was free to join the APC.
He said: “The PDP would do better if they spent their time trying to fix their rickety ship after such dismal primaries than to cast stones at the APC’s more democratic and genuine process.
“They speak in this manner because they are afraid the APC will confront them with a ticket they cannot beat by fair means.
“We will do our own internal consultations and arrive at a ticket we believe is best suited to govern Nigeria.
“If they are so interested in who we pick, they are free to quit their bankrupt party and join the party that offers the best hope for this nation and its future.”