North not engaging Tinubu’s government intelligently – Sowunmi
A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party in Ogun State, Segun Sowunmi, on Monday, carpeted the Northern leaders for what he called unnecessary victimisation and criticism of President Bola Tinubu’s government.
Sowunmi, who is the founder of The Alternative, a national opposition movement, equally urged the President to dismantle his present economic team, saying the composition is currently “Pro-Yoruba” and it is a disadvantage to managing the cultural diversity of the country.
The PDP leader also faulted the economic policies of President Tinubu’s government, particularly the floating of the Naira, saying that it was one terrible policy that had launched many Nigerians into poverty.
Sowunmi disclosed this in a media chat held at his Abeokuta residence on Monday.
He said that it was wrong for the North to criticise the government of President Tinubu; its policies are designed to favour the Yoruba as a whole far and above any other tribe in the country.
The opposition leader said that just as the nation supported past leaders despite their foibles, it wouldn’t be out of place for such support to be extended to the present administration.
Sowunmi explained, “But for the sanity, safety and unity of our country, the rhetorics coming from the North is offensively getting too dangerously.
“Government policies are not designed to favour one part of the other, no government policies are designed, and every part of the nation struggles to find a way to exist and survive.
“Secondly, the North, with due respect to them, also did not engage Tinubu’s government intelligently because the things they wanted to hang themselves on a things that are irrelevant, such as the fuel subsidy.
“There is no way you can continue to pay subsidy when you don’t have money. Nobody is not doing Yoruba a favour as a collective under the government of President Tinubu.
“I have not heard that anyone has been given the Yoruba subsidy on petroleum products. The Yoruba, like others, buy it for the price of the product being sold in the country.
“I have also not heard that the President is sharing one special palliative to the Yoruba because of the prevailing economic challenge. So this unnecessary victimisation must stop”.
The former spokesperson to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has, however, also knocked President Tinubu for being clannish with the composition of his economic team.
Sowunmi said, “This government, along with its economic team, has also not tried to be inclusive. They have been careless in managing the diversity of the country.
Any government that takes all the finance infrastructure, revenue infrastructure, spending infrastructure, and the leadership of same to be in one ethnic group, even if it is Fulani, Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo or anyone for that matter, would be very wrong given our own fluid kind of federalism that we run.
“So I call on the President to preserve the sanity, unity, inclusivity, the balance and sense of belonging of this nation and should therefore dismantle the economic team that is too pro-Yoruba”.
The Ogun State PDP governorship aspirant in the 2023 general election disclosed that he birthed ‘The Alternative’ to address the dangers posed by tribal rhetoric across the country.
He said, “It has become imperative for Nigerians to avail themselves with alternative ways of doing things in the country, alternative ways of doing democracy, alternative ways of engagement and conversation so that we don’t destroy what we have created over the years”.
Regarding his aspiration for the position of National Chairman of the PDP, Sowunmi said he remained the only person who could reposition and reinvigorate the party and reclaim its number one position in Nigeria.
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