BUHARI IS INTELLECTUALLY INCAPABLE FOR DEBATE- PDP

The Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Campaign Organisation yesterday revealed that the All Progressives Congress [APC] decision to not participate in the Presidential debate is to shield Muhammadu Buhari’s intellectual laziness. The also went on to say that Mr. Buhari lacks the ability to constructively engage on contemporary national issues in public.

The APC had declared last thursday that they won’t participate in the planned debate due to it being organized by BON because the organisers are allegedly supporters of the PDP.
PDP’s Director of Media and Publicity, Femi Fani-Kayode said that the APC knew that Buhari would fail when questioned on issues of national governance and development.


The PDP also said they knew that the APC had already expressed its concerns when approached by an international news channel for a debate, about the intellectual acumen of Mr.Buhari, and had assured the news channel that it was only comfortable with its vice presidential candidate, Yemi Osinbajo, who has capacity to feature brilliantly on the programme.

“We have just read a report in the media credited to the APC Presidential Campaign Organisation that the party would not allow its candidate, General Muhammadu Buhari, to participate in the radio and television presidential debate organized by the Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria, BON,” the statement said.

‘The APC accused the organisers of the debate of unhidden bias and campaign of calumny by some key organisers of the programme against the corporate political interest of the party and its candidates.
“Whilst we will not bother ourselves with the many reasons adduced by the APC, we wish to state that we see the APC’s decision as an attempt to shield its presidential candidate from displaying his intellectual laziness and inability to constructively engage contemporary national issues in a live television and radio debate.”
“We had envisaged that the APC would be reluctant to expose Mr. Buhari to the rigours of a live television debate because the opposition party knows that its candidate will flunk it. If the APC truly believes that it is ‘a party of progressive intellectuals’, as it claims it should allow General Buhari to prove that at the debate.”
They said that Buhari not participating in the debate shows the disdain both the party and its candidate have for the Nigerian people.

It said, “We are convinced that General Buhari does not have what it takes to sustain a coherent argument on germane issues of governance and development.
“We challenge General Buhari to a debate on any national and international medium of mass communication and our candidate, President Goodluck Jonathan, will be ready to participate.
“On the other hand, President Jonathan’s running mate, Vice President Namadi Sambo, is also ready to participate in the debate and any other debate.
“Our presidential candidate and his running mate will not raise flimsy and escapist excuses such as “unhidden bias” and the like, since we believe that they are well-rounded intellectuals who have been prepared by their experience in office to answer any question under the sun on the governance of our nation.”
APC had refused to participate in the national debate due to the believe that the debate organizers, BON won’t be partial in their questions.