APC, Sagay hail Buhari’s sack of Lawal, Oke as PDP calls for President’s impeachment

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has hailed President Muhammadu Buhari for sacking former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Babachir Lawal, and former Director General, National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Ayo Oke, stating that it had been vindicated.

Chairman, Presidential Advisory Committee on Anti-Corruption (PACAC), Prof Itse Sagay, also commended the president for the decision which he described as long overdue.

Meanwhile, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), said the move was “a slap on the face of Nigerians”, and called on the National Assembly to impeach President Buhari.

The APC National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, on Monday in Abuja stated that President Buhari had done the right thing by sacking the officials.

“Few days ago when the President directed the dismissal of Abdulrasheed Maina, some people say that is right, but what about the suspended SGF.

“But the President, by virtue of the position he occupies, is the only one who has all the information and he would do what is necessary at the right time.

“We have been vindicated and it shows that the President has not in any way waiver in his commitment not to tolerate corruption at any level no matter who is involved,” he stated.

On his part,  Sagay said the former SGF’s sack was long overdue.

Read also: Buhari’s sack of Lawal, Oke not enough, should be handed over to EFCC, ICPC- SERAP

“I think there has been a consensus on this and that was overdue, there has been too much delay.

“Although I will like to put a caveat that government usually has a lot more information than the rest of us as the delay might have been discretionary due to the information they had.

“I was patient and I definitely endorse the final decision that has been taken”, he said.

In a sharply contrasting reaction, the PDP called on the National Assembly to impeach President Buhari over the way he handled the cases involving Lawal and Oke, accusing the president of double standard.

The party’s spokesperson, Prince Dayo Adeyeye, made the party’s position known in a statement in Abuja on Monday.

He said, “The statement on the sack of Babachir Lawal, the former Secretary to the Government of the Federation and Ayo Oke, the former Director-General of Nigerian Intelligence Agency is a slap on the face (sic ) of Nigerians.

“It is an insult to the-collective intelligence of our people who have waited patiently for the President’s reaction on the humongous act of corruption by two of his principal aides and this is totally unacceptable.”

Adeyeye stated that the party had earlier disagreed with the setting up of the panel headed by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo to look into the corruption allegations against the two officials, adding that such cases were better handled by either the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) or the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC).

He said, “First and foremost, we had disagreed with the President last year when he decided to setup the panel headed by the Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo to investigate the matter because we thought that was the wrong course of action to take. “

 

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