Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) national chairman, Prince Uche Secondus were some of the eminent Nigerians that have commended Acting President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo over Tuesday sacking of the Director General, Department of State Security (DSS), Lawal Daura.
Atiku noted that by firing the DSS boss, Osinbajo has hearken to the voices of Nigerians who have spoken in condemnation of his anti-democratic practices.
A statement from the Atiku Media Office quoted the 2019 Presidential hopeful on the platform of the PDP as saying he is fully in support of Osinbajo’s decision to relieve Daura of his duties.
He also called for an independent judicial panel of inquiry, to investigate Tuesday incidence at the National Assembly to fish out those responsible and bring them to book.
“These are delicate times for Nigeria and all lovers of democracy and the rule of law must be extra watchful lest anti-democratic forces take advantage of all we have worked hard to build,” the statement read.
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On his part, Secondus saluted what he called the courage exhibited by the Acting President in the sacking of Daura even as condemned DSS presence at the National Assembly entrance gate in the early hours of Tuesday.
A statement signed by his media aide, Ike Abonyi quoted the PDP boss as calling on the British government not to provide shelter for forces working against democracy in Nigeria.
He added that the final plan for the invasion of National Assembly was concretized when the minority leader Senator Godswill Akpabio visited the President in London at the weekend.
According to Prince Secondus the siege on the National Assembly left no one in doubt that President Muhammadu Buhari and the APC are out to destroy the nation’s hard-earned democracy all because they could no longer fit into it.
“When an executive arm in a democratic setting muscle up other arms of government, the correct name for such administration is autocracy and dictatorship.
“Nigerians and international community have continuously watched this administration harass and intimidate the legislature and judiciary as well as others in opposition in their bid to create a dictatorial regime.
“All over the World, the parliament is the bastion of democracy and rule of law; anybody not willing to align himself to them is trying to create anarchy in the land,” the statement read in part.
He further called on President Buhari to resign “and pave way for the sustenance of democracy since it is now obvious that he has lost legitimacy to continue as an elected President.”
Meanwhile, the Reformed All Progressives Congress (R-APC) has chided President Buhari over the National Assembly incident, saying democracy has suffered untold harassment since he assumed power in 2015.
In a statement issued by its spokesperson, Kassim Afegbua, the group said even though the President left the military many years ago; Tuesday’s incident showed that he is yet to imbibe the tenets of democracy.
“We are pained by the gunpoint democracy that President Muhammadu Buhari has introduced to our body politic. Even though a former coupist, we thought all these years of democratic engagements and orientation would have properly reintegrated him into our democratic system, to pull off the toga of militarism, but the reckless abuse and use of security forces to undermine our democracy now and then, speak otherwise.
“We condemn the continued partisanship of the security agencies against the interest of Nigerians. We wish to insist that these categories of persons be denied visas or have their visas revoked on account of their anti-democratic conducts which have consistently threatened the very foundation of our fledgling democracy.
“We are alarmed by the recklessness which APC, a party that preaches change, has degenerated like a piece of idiocy in their devilish machinations to unseat properly constituted authority. This action of the APC against the Senate President, and its desperate plot to unseat him has permanently left a gory scar on our democracy,” the statement read in part.