Politics

Tinubu to Obi: Your manifesto empty, offers nothing new

The presidential candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, has described as “empty” the campaign manifesto of his challenger on the platform of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi.

Tinubu equally said the 62-page manifesto titled, ‘It’s Possible: Our Pact with Nigerians’, has nothing new to offer to Nigerians.

The APC presidential flag-bearer said Obi’s campaign manifesto contained no grand policy initiatives and options to excite right thinking Nigerians, adding that the document was silent about how the former governor of Anambra State wanted to achieve his objectives.

He said this via a statement issued on Tuesday by the Director, Media and Publicity APC Presidential Campaign Council, Bayo Onanuga.

Onanuga further described Obi’s manifesto as “a poor imitation and regurgitation” of what President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration is doing.

He stated: “We are glad that Labour Party and its presidential candidate, Mr. Peter Obi finally released their much-awaited policy document after many contradictory statements on same.

“After perusing the document which is very high on graphics and demagogic rhetorics and short on substance, we have come to the conclusion that the document is empty and vacuous.

“The document which is titled ‘It is Possible: Our Pact with Nigerians’, offers nothing refreshing to Nigerians and comes across as total anti-climax. The subtitle ‘Action Plan’ was shamelessly parroted from Asiwaju Bola Tinubu’s manifesto.

“By now, many of the gullible followers must have been utterly disappointed that their man didn’t offer them anything to be proud of after all the blusters and the initial leakage of the document, which contains, strangely, 15 pages of the biographical sketches of Obi and his running mate, Datti Baba-Ahmed.

“Mr Peter Obi’s document contains no grand policy initiatives and options to excite right-thinking Nigerians. It was silent about how Obi wants to achieve his high falutin objectives. Instead, it will set alarm bells ringing in the South-South and North East as Obi promises to ‘engineer the transition of Nigeria from a fossil fuel dependency to climate and eco-friendly energy use.”

The spokesperson of the APC campaign council added: “In fact, the document Mr Obi released is a poor imitation and regurgitation of what the current APC-led administration of President Muhammadu Buhari is doing. If anything, the document showed him as a man without honour, credibility and character because he is promising to do all the things he has railed against and de-legitimised in the past.

“We make bold to state that Mr Obi lacks the mental acuity and rigour for the job he is asking Nigerians to entrust to him. He is surely not ready and prepared to be the President this great country deserves.”

Onanuga stated that Obi “is vapid, intellectually arid, a mere impostor who only seeks to play on the emotions of his gullible followers.

“Mr. Obi’s policy document, if anything, has only exposed him as ill-prepared for the titanic task of governing a country the size of Nigeria. As a candidate, he has nothing new to offer Nigerians beyond hawking fake statistics and preying on the young people’s sentiments as a demagogue.

“Nigerians are warned to steer clear of Obi and his party. His whole presidential ambition is full of sound and fury, signifying nothing, to paraphrase Williams Shakespeare in his play Macbeth,” he added.

The Star