The African Democratic Congress, which has been adopted by Obasanjo, has warned the Federal Government that it will shut down the Presidential Villa if Obasanjo is harmed.
The Chairman of the ADC, Chief Okey Nwosu, said this during a telephone interview with our correspondent on Friday.
Nwosu said having failed to deliver on its campaign promises, the Buhari-led government had resorted to hounding opposition members into submission.
He said when Obasanjo was supporting Buhari during the run-up to the 2015 general elections; he was described as an advocate of change by Buhari and his supporters, but the same man was now being treated as a criminal because he was speaking against the government.
The ADC chairman said, “What we are witnessing is the desperation of a failed government. When you have mediocre persons that are not focused on handling state power, they often go to dictatorial levels to try to achieve their aim but this time, the people of Nigeria and God are on our side and we will do what our country needs.
“President Obasanjo cannot be touched. When in 2014 and 2015, he was in the vanguard of trying to effect change because of the situation then, they were applauding him as the champion of a new Nigeria.”
“Now that things have gone wrong in the area of security and economy and he is speaking out, they are now chasing the champion of new Nigeria. We will mobilize the whole of Nigeria to take over Aso Rock Villa if the government steps out of line.”
But two civil society organizations, Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project and the Committee for the Defence of Human Rights, said Obasanjo should be ready to face trial if there was any evidence of financial mismanagement traced to his administration.
The SERAP Director, Adetokunbo Mumuni, said the former President’s alarm of a witch-hunt by President Buhari was unnecessary as the anti-graft agencies must carry out their statutory responsibilities.
Mumuni said, “The truth of the matter is that Buhari should not be the one to set the EFCC against anybody; the anti-graft agency should do its job, investigate allegations of crime against anybody and begin prosecution. That Obasanjo is crying foul will not stop the agencies from going after him, if indeed there are admissible evidence against him.
“I don’t think we should listen to Obasanjo. Rather, we should let the EFCC do what is legally appropriate and prosecute anyone who is supposed to be prosecuted. If Obasanjo has a case to answer, he should be ready to have his day in court under the due process.”
Also, the CDHR President, Malachy Ugwummadu, said, “Obasanjo should not play to the gallery. For me, it will be a huge positive development if this government can muster enough courage to take on Obasanjo.
“If the government has credible information or evidence to take on Obasanjo, it will clearly show that all the people in the league of former presidents can be taken up.”
PUNCH NEWSPAPER
