2023 campaign: Be ruthless to Keyamo, activist urges Dino Melaye
3 min readA human rights activist, Comrade Paul Ikechukwu Njoku, has urged Senator Dino Melaye, the spokesperson for the Atiku Abubakar presidential campaign, to continue to be logically and intellectually ruthless to the spokesman for the Ahmed Bola Tinubu presidential campaign, Festus Keyamo.
The rights activist added that the latter is unpatriotic to the plights of the 3.6 millions of Nigerian University students who are currently sitting at home rather than in schools and to the yearnings of Nigerians who are facing scorching insecurity and economic death in the General Muhammadu Buhari (Rtd) regime.
In a statement made available to our correspondent, Njoku said, “The unconscionable statement by Festus Keyamo over the unprecedented rising insecurity in Nigeria has further exposed and proved that the APC government wants every Nigerian to die and go to heaven where there is no insecurity according to Keyamo.
“Festus Keyamo should be told there is no Boko Haram terrorism and sponsored banditry in Ghana, America, Europe and other parts of the world where the president is not incompetently always unaware of what happens in his goverment. He should be informed that countries of the world keenly protect her citizens against murderous invaders and terrorists except the APC goverment.
“Keyamo’s statement on insecurity and Nigerian University students is unpatriotic to the plights of the 3.6 millions of Nigerian University undergraduates who are sitting at home rather than in schools and to the yearnings of Nigerians who are on daily basis faced with killings, ruthless insecurity and economic death in the Buhari-led Federal goverment.
“I therefore urge Dino Melaye to continue to be logically ruthless to Festus Keyamo in politicking and intellectual campaign engagements till he realises that Buhari is indefensible and that Nigerians are sadly disappointed in the present anti-peoples’ government”.
It would be recalled that Senator Dino Melaye carpeted the Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Festus Keyamo, over his recent outburst against the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar.
Mr. Keyamo while featuring on Channels Television last week Friday, attacked the former Vice President, condemning his presidential ambition, adding that Atiku has nothing to offer the country.
Keyamo further stated in the interview that the PDP candidate lacks the capacity to rule Nigeria as a president and that the Labour Party presidential candidate, Mr Peter Obi, is far better than Atiku in terms of capacity and experience.
However, in a viral video, Dino who was angered by Keyamo’s vituperations, said the Minister lacks the moral bearings to attack Atiku. Dino, a former PDP governorship aspirant in Kogi State countered Keyamo, saying anyone who has served as Vice President is fit for the number one position.
In the video which was published on his social media handles, Dino dared the minister to a public debate where he vowed to break him (Keyamo) into pieces.
He fumed, “Ask Nigerians today, what portfolio is Keyamo holding? Many will tell you that they don’t even know the ministry he is working in because he is redundant, inactive, and not visible.
“Because he is not known as Minister, he is mistaking his officer as a Minister of State for the office of the Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. No Nigerian who is educated, and intellectually okay will abuse the office of the Vice President of Nigeria.
“What Keyamo attacked is not Atiku Abubakar but the office of the Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the number two office in this country.
“Because he has monetized his conscience, that is why he will not understand that the office of Nigerian VP has some ministries, agencies under its direct supervision and oversight.
“That is why he will not know that in the absence of the president, the vice president is the acting president with executive power anytime the president is out of the country. So what he has done is that he has abused the office of Nigerian VP even as a lawyer who should understand the constitutionality of that office.
“Anyone who has been a VP is fit to be a president. Can Keyamo also say that Atiku has not succeeded internationally as a businessman?
“Just because you are acting under ‘sekpe’ or under the influence of marijuana, you just smoke your ganja and you think you can just open your mouth and talk? Because you are defending someone who takes drugs more than food today”?