Peter Obi’s presidential campaign has reacted to the move by President Bola Tinubu to offer board slots to state governors including those from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Labour Party.
Chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum and Kwara state governor, Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, in a communiqué issued at the end of the NGF meeting on Wednesday, July 12 disclosed that President Tinubu asked the governors to nominate competent persons into the dissolved boards and parastatals of Federal Government agencies. .
Abdulrazaq said the members of the governors forum commended President Tinubu for extending an opportunity to the governors to nominate board members across party lines.
No fewer than 2,000 positions have become vacant following the dissolution of the governing boards of over 153 agencies, parastatals, institutions, and government-owned companies by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Reacting, Chief Spokesman for Obi-Datti Campaign Council, Yunusa Tanko said the board slots to governors ‘’will not change the fact that Tinubu’s presidency is an illegitimate government.’’
He described the board slots as a ‘gimmick’ to lure the opposition governments into the ruling APC.
“APC is doing everything in their crooked book to ensure they legitimize this government, which we have resisted vehemently. We will only do what is rightfully ours when the court makes its decision and pronouncement.
‘’But as far as we are concerned, every attempt we see them do is a means to cajole people to believe and legitimize their government. That is the truth about it.’’
He added ‘’Sending letters to state governors is part of the process of legitimizing their governance, which we are resisting. At the moment, LP has only one governor. The belief is that the governor may likely dance to their tune. ‘’But the truth about it is that will the APC tell you they don’t have party people in Abia State that they can nominate? Why must they go through the governor to do so? What they are aiming to do is to indirectly co-opt him into their party. That’s the truth.”
Obi’s media aide, Tai Obasi, added: “It is obviously a gimmick. Of course, you know the man (Tinubu) and the problem he is facing in court. It is easy for one to see what he is trying to do even though it looks positive though.
“But again, the oppositions are not fools. As we are concerned, we still see his government as an interim one.”