The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Governors’ Forum rose from its regular monthly meeting in Jalingo, the Taraba State capital lamenting that rather than undertake a review of macro-economic and social policies with a view to giving them a human face, the Federal Government has resorted to blackmail.
This was as the Forum noted with concern, the refusal of the Federal Government to distinguish between the Federal Government of Nigeria revenue and revenue accruing to the Federation which must be allocated in accordance with extant laws.
The PDP Governors specifically called on the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Accountant General of the Federation to be more transparent in obeying the law, particularly section 162 (1) (2) (3).
The Forum also called on the Accountant General of the Federation to stop behaving like the Accountant General of the Federal Government and to exercise her role in line with constitution.
The Governors therefore called for the separation of the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation and that of the Accountant General of the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN).
It particularly called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to show statesmanship by restraining his officials from blame games, that make the sub-nationals look bad by mentioning piecemeal interventions that cannot solve the problem.
The PDP Governors stressed that they remain unshaken in their firm resolve to stand with the suffering Nigerian masses and to take all legitimate steps to ameliorate their plight.
These were contained in a communique issued and signed by the Chairman of the Forum, who is also the governor of Bauchi State, Senator Bala Mohammed, stating that peaceful protests are the inalienable rights of the citizens through which they vent their genuine grievances.
The Forum while commiserating with the families of the innocent souls that were lost, called on the Federal Government to ensure fair and speedy trial of those who were arrested.
The PDP Governors noted with a sigh of relief the end of the #EndBadGovernance protests which they said was edging to a major national crisis and saluted the dexterity of the Governors especially of the PDP extraction in handling the situation in their respective States with maturity, thereby restraining hoodlums and other unscrupulous elements from hijacking the protests.
The Meeting of the Forum which deliberated on crucial intra-party and governance matters affecting their states as well as those of overriding national interest and importance, noted with dismay the political impasse in Rivers State where court judgements are employed to determine the outcome of the party congresses.
The PDP Governors’ Forum therefore restated its stand with the Governor of Rivers State, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, stressing that it would engage the National Working Committee (NWC) of the PDP to revisit the congress with a view to correcting the anomaly and allowing His Governor Fubara to take his rightful leadership position of the party in the state,
On the forth coming governorship election in Edo State, the Forum condemned the pronouncements by the President to compromise the election in favour of his Party as well as the systematic intimidation of PDP supporters by the Nigeria Police and called on the Inspector General of Police to call his men to order.
The Forum commended the Taraba State Government, under Governor Agbu Kefas, for the hospitality accorded members of the Forum and the Secretariat and noted with delight the giant steps taken to deliver the dividends of democracy to the people of the state; which is in line with the governance philosophy of the PDP.
