The Peoples Democratic Party has denied the allegation leveled against it by the opposition All Progressives Congress the House of Representatives members who defected to the party were bribed.
The ruling party described the statement as a “lie” adding that the allegation was coming from “a sinking party.”
The PDP’s reaction was contained in a statement issued in Abuja and signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh on wednesday.
It will be recalled that the APC, in a statement by its Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, had accused the PDP of using public funds to bribe some of the federal lawmakers who had defected from the ruling party to the APC.
Mohammed alleged that, in an unprecedented show of desperation, the PDP had allegedly rolled out a mouth-watering package promising each senator who returns to the PDP $2m; $1m to each member of the House of Representatives, and $10m to each ‘leader’ who abandons the APC for the PDP.
It said the price tag for the federal legislators from Rivers State was even higher, which he put at $5m each.
Metuh however said that all well-meaning Nigerians were indeed worried by the statements and actions of the APC which he said were aimed at destroying Nigeria’s democracy and plunging the nation into chaos.
He said that in alleging that lawmakers were being financially induced, the APC sought to create doubt in the minds of Nigerians regarding the integrity of duly elected persons and the entire democratic institution.
He said, “Though this is a preposterous and cheap thesis by the APC to explain away the collapsing fraud upon which its membership is built, it is nonetheless a vicious attack on the citadel of democracy and we call on the leadership and members of the National Assembly not to view the allegation as a mere political statement.
“We urge the National Assembly to insist that the APC withdraws the allegation and apologise to the legislature and the entire nation.
“The truth is that the APC has reached its peak. Diminishing returns has set in and the party can only go down further.”
