From Romanus Ugwu, Abuja
Visitors, staff and even national leaders of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) had a tough time coping with the performance of their official activities at the headquarters of the party following several hours of blackout and faulty generating set.
Our correspondent, who monitored events at the secretariat of the ruling party in Abuja gathered that apart from opening all the windows and doors of their offices to cope with the intensity of the heat, many others had to even hang outside because of lack of power supply.
Although the National Chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun,received visitors and attended to official functions almost all day, he equally had a fair share of the hostile situation as he was said to have lamented the situation which he attributed to the faulty generator.
Speaking further, our sources said the chairman was even sweating while attending to visitors, adding that the harsh economic situation in the country is not only affecting the ruling party but also grounding several activities. “We have been like this since today. There was no power supply at the secretariat almost all day just as experienced in other parts of the country.
The staff are concerned about the situation but when the national chairman was sweating and receiving visitors under this condition, what do we do.
“If not because of the faulty generating set, the effect would not have been as pronounced . It is laughable that a ruling party like APC cannot fix a faulty standby generator.
It is a confirmation of the harsh economic situation. I don’t want to say that the party is broke but like the chairman confirmed some time ago, we are equally facing some financial challenges,” our source said.
Although all attempts to reach either the party boss or his assistant director on publicity including a text message failed, a staff at the headquarters, who spoke in confidence, however assured that the generating set would be fixed unfailingly today.
Meanwhile, the President Muhammadu Buhari Media Support Group (BMSG) has condemned the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) caucus in the Senate over threat to make governance difficult for the President if the Senate President, Bukola Saraki is removed.
The group, in a statement signed by the national coordinator, Muhammad Labbo and the secretary, Cassidy Madueke, yesterday in Abuja, said: “It is totally unpatriotic for some senators to seek to compound the nation’s problems, at a period when the President and his team are working round the clock to fix the country from the rot the PDP administration left it.”
The statement further said it is on record that one Senator Clifford Ordia representing Edo Central had in a press statement stated that in their support for the embattled Senator Saraki “that they will make governance difficult should Senator Saraki be removed.
“We want to put on record that President Muhammadu Buhari does not interfere in the affairs of the Legislature and therefore should not be distracted from delivering the promised “Change” to Nigerians. “The President does not have a hand in the trial of Senator Saraki, as all institutions of government are allowed to carry out their responsibilities without let or hindrance,” he said.