This position was contained in a statement on Friday by Israel Ebije, the Chief Press Secretary to the Niger State Governor, Dr. Babangida Aliyu.
Ebije insisted that based on the unsavoury, personalized and pedestrian opinion of the state opposition party kicking against the security measures put in place by the Aliyu administration, the opposition has no security agenda for the people of the state.
The statement said: “It is therefore very sad for a political party to trivialize issue of security, playing hide and seek game of political sabre-rattling for dominance towards self based interest of making government a prebend of a few brigands. It is therefore mischievous for a political party interested in winning an election to be oblivious of the import of spending on security.”
The spokesman, reacting to the position of the Niger State APC Publicity Secretary, who chided the state government on security spendings, said the position of the party was unfortunate and a complete disaster, especially now that Nigeria needs politicians who are security conscious.
According to the governors’ spokesman, the role of the opposition is to complement that of the ruling party in identifying lapses and to keep the government in power on track in the area of dividends of democracy, and not to embark on guerilla attacks based on jaundiced opinion of ill informed and self seeking hooded individuals as located in the Niger State chapter of the APC.
Ebije added in the statement: “It is indeed very unfortunate the Niger APC Publicity Secretary is only re-circling stories which are puerile, stale and have no substance. Very sad he does not consult competent sources for facts before jabbering to the media on workings of government. It is also very sad he has only exposed to the public how the Niger opposition see security matters.”
About the bond collected by the state government, the statement urged the APC spokesman to go and check the payment modules of the bonds taken so far, asking him to also go round the 25 local governments in the state to inspect the 10 kilometre road networks, check the hospitals and schools before bellowing out drivels.
The governor’s spokesman called on the party to be issue based and not allow an individual to be bleating out one line of incoherent armchair opinion without consulting facts, adding that it diminishes the credibility of the entire party.