Buhari’s silence at inauguration speaks volumes PDP warns

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Wednesday, May 29, condemned President Muhammadu Buhari's failure to address Nigerians at the 2019 presidential inauguration. The PDP said President Buhari’s failure to address Nigerians at the Presidential inauguration shows that the President and his party are overburdened by the guilt of the rigged Presidential election. A statement by the national publicity secretary for PDP, Kola Ologbondiyan, said the action of the president show his insensitivity and the level of derision with which his handlers and the All Progressives Congress hold Nigerians. Ologbondiyan said the president and the APC failed to use the opportunity presented by the inauguration to make any commitment to citizens. The poor attendance and passivity of the audience at the ceremony at a time that Nigerians were trooping, in their millions, to the inauguration of state governors elected on the platform of the PDP, manifestly show “It is indeed pathetic that at a ceremony such as Presidential inauguration, where truly elected leaders address their people, make commitments and unfold their governance direction, President Buhari did not showcase his plans or commitment to the development of critical sectors of our polity," Ologbondiyan said. The PDP alleged that the activities of the 2019 inauguration speaks volumes and also tells the people President Buhari had nothing to say to the victims of mindless killings and acts of violence in various parts of Nigeria. “Moreover, he had no directions toward stemming the economic distress under his administration, for which Nigerians are now resorting to suicide and slavery mission abroad as options. In failing to address Nigerians, President Buhari turned the inauguration to a parody. The PDP, however, urges Nigerians to take solace in their determination to retrieve our stolen Presidential mandate at the tribunal so as to entrench a leadership that can lead our nation out of her present predicament," Ologbondiyan added. However, Daily Trust reports that a source within the presidency said the president’s inaugural speech would be delivered on June 12 - Nigeria's new Democracy Day. The source who pleaded anonymity said the president’s inaugural speech was not meant for the swearing in ceremony. Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that President Buhari and 29 state governors-elect who emerged winners from the 2019 general elections on Wednesday, May 29, took their oath of office. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared President Buhari the winner of the 2019 presidential election. According to the electoral body, Buhari polled 15,191,847 votes to defeat his closest rival Atiku Abubakar of the PDP who polled 11,262,978 to lose the election with a margin of 3,928,869 votes