The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has described the N6.8 trillion
2016 federal budget presented by President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday
as a big fraud and executive conspiracy tailored towards mortgaging the
future of the nation.
In a statement on Tuesday, by its National Publicity Secretary, Chief
Olisa Metuh, the PDP queried President Buhari’s decision to borrow N2
trillion, the biggest in the history of the nation as the height of
recklessness and deceit from a government that trends on propaganda.
The party berated the Federal Government for trying to use their
bogus welfare programme and phantom capital projects as cover and
conduit to siphon the funds to satisfy partisan interests, particularly
to settle huge campaign debts.
“It is obvious that this budget is an extension of the campaign
promises of the APC government, presented as a manifesto filled with
bogus promises which implementation will be inconclusive, thereby
allowing the APC to once again deny their promises.
“There has never been any known economy in the world where government
deliberately mortgage the future of its nation by borrowing excessively
to finance partisan interests while hiding under bogus welfare
programmes. This is moreso important as the APC in reeling out their
bogus campaign promises never informed Nigerians that they would
mortgage their future through excessive borrowing.
“We have it on good authority that this is the first in the series of
APC borrowings which would leave the future generation of Nigerians
under the burden of huge debts after four years”
The PDP said the budget clearly shows that after seven months in
power, President Buhari and his party, the All Progressives Congress
(APC) are yet to differentiate between governance and campaign
propaganda.
“By all standards, the 2016 budget, the first major economic policy
outing of this government, is completely unrealistic and duplicitously
embellished with impractical predications, a development that confirms
fears by economy watchers and investors that this administration is
obviously ill-equipped for governance.
“We are indeed shocked that President Buhari and his minister of
information have come up with two different reasons for the current fuel
crisis in the country. While we appreciate the President’s apology, we
think it is high time he called this minister to order as his excessive
propaganda and blame game are ridiculing this administration and the
image of the nation.
“Furthermore, it is instructive to note the official endorsement of
Mr. President to the devaluation of the naira as against his campaign
promise of firming up the value of our currency even to the much vaunted
one naira to one dollar. Does it mean that Mr. President lied his way
to power, or that he did not understand the complexities of governance
when he was making his false promises to Nigerians?” asked the PDP.
Continuing, the PDP said: “In future, there is need to regulate
campaign promises so that we will not end up with a government that
promises to climb Mount Everest with bare hands and end up mortgaging
our future with orchestrated borrowings.
“Finally, we want to request Mr. President to once again to involve
experienced and well-tested hands in the management of the economy and
budgeting processes. This economy is not for Mr. President, neither is
it for the APC. The progress of the economy is for all Nigerians and as
such, due care should taken to save ourselves from unrealistic and
deceptive programmes.”
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