The All Progressives Congress, APC yesterday shut its door to defectors from the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, charging would be defectors to either form a constructive opposition or quit politics. The charge from the APC came as the PDP following a meeting of the national chairman with zonal and state chairmen of the party accused the APC of using carrot and stick to dismember their party with the intention of enthroning a one party dictatorship in the country. The PDP chieftains in their post-mortem of the recent elections also urged aggrieved candidates of the party who lost out to seek judicial redress with the affirmation that the party would support them all the way. The APC reacting to a communiqué of the meeting between the National Working Committee, NWC of the PDP and its elected governors and senators on Tuesday affirmed that the party was scared stiff of playing opposition. Noting the continued interest of the leaders of the PDP to jump ship, the APC in a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said the party was not enthusiastic about receiving the PDP defectors. ''The truth of the matter is that the leadership of the PDP is not even waiting to be approached before fleeing to the APC. PDP leaders and members are falling over themselves shamelessly and swearing undying allegiance to the APC. Well, in case they did not get the message of the President-elect and our National Chairman, we want to repeat it in very blunt terms: PDP leaders and members, you are not welcome in APC. Please stay in your party, but if – as we suspect – you cannot survive in opposition, then take a walk, quit politics,'' the party said. Affirming that the leaders of the PDP were afraid to stay in the opposition, he said: "We don't blame them as they have neither the capacity nor the commitment to be in opposition. A party that stood for nothing but looting and rent collection will naturally be afraid of being in opposition, where there is nothing to loot or rent to collect.'' APC wants to turn nigeria into one-party state - PDP Rising from the meeting of state and zonal chairmen with the national chairman of the party at the PDP National Secretariat, the PDP vowed to resist what it termed as undue harassments, witch-hunt and intimidation from the APC aimed at bringing down its members psychologically. The party which described the defeat of the party as temporary urged its candidates in the recent elections with evidence of malpractice against them to go to the tribunals with a promise to back them all the way. In a Communiqué issued at the end of the meeting, the PDP cautioned the President- elect against any action or inaction that could threaten the gains of democracy and personal freedom that the party stressed it established in the last 16 years. The Communiqué, which was signed by Amb. Ibrahim Kazaure and Emmanuel Agbo for National Vice Chairmen and State Chairmen respectively reads, "The National Working Committee (NWC), National Vice Chairmen and State Chairmen of the PDP in the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja after a crucial meeting on Wednesday, April 22, 2015 at the National Secretariat Abuja resolved that "The meeting notes the outcome of the 2015 general elections and accordingly resolves not to allow the temporary setback affect the party's contributions to the country’s democratic development” "The meeting notes and appreciates the patriotic stand taken by President Goodluck Jonathan after the elections as another milestone in the party's contributions to peace, stability and progress of the nation.
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