 |
The caretaker chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Ahmed Makarfi, has said that fear is the reason the All Progressives Congress has failed to hold its national convention for many years.
Makarfi stated this in Abuja on Tuesday when he received the chairman of the Steering Committee on the Development of Strategic Plan for the National Institute of Legislative Studies, Aminu Shagari, and members who came on a courtesy visit.
"You have prayed for a successful convention of the PDP. We are not afraid. We are not the APC, we are not afraid to hold convention. We are not afraid to hold meetings and convention because we are democratic,” he said.
But the APC has dismissed the allegation.
The national publicity secretary of the APC, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, said the claim “is an empty platitude” lacking in substance. Abdullahi said, “We don’t respond to this kind of empty platitude lacking in substance. Did the PDP say why they are saying we are afraid? If they said we are afraid, afraid of what or who? We won’t dignify their assertion with a response.”
Makarfi had earlier told his guests that he is aware that the procedure for legislation is long and cumbersome, adding that the voting pattern could, however, be improved. He said the process of lawmaking “is not so democratic and the problem facing Nigeria goes beyond nay and yea because the moment we begin to reduce it to that, very sensitive issues that have telling effects on this country can be so lazily settled, we will face the consequences down the line.” Shagari, in his response, praised PDP for its contributions to the building of democratic structures in the country.
Tags
Politics