The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Malam Garba Shehu, has described the electoral victory of the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidates in the 2023 general elections as a difficult reality for the opposition parties.
The presidential aide stated this while receiving members of the “Arewa Young Lawyers’ Forum (AYLF),” the umbrella body for all young lawyers in the Northern part of Nigeria, on Thursday in Abuja.
According to him, the victory of the President-elect and Vice President-elect, Bola Tinubu and Kashim Shettima, respectively, and the established control of the APC in 21 out of 36 states, had firmly established the party as a dominant national political party.
‘‘This is a difficult reality for the opposition parties,’’ he said.
Shehu said the opposition's victory in the general election would not only have been a career-ending moment for many APC leaders but would also have had negative consequences for the various programs of the Buhari administration.
He noted that these programs empowered marginalized groups and remedied much of the nation’s infrastructure deficit.
“APC victory in the election is a watershed moment for the Buhari government, its orientation, its programs, and projects.
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‘‘In the hands of the opposition, many of the laudable programs of the Buhari administration would have been sabotaged or unimplemented.
“An important and overlooked aspect of the Tinubu/Shettima victory is that it ensures, not only an orderly transfer of power from the outgoing administration to the incoming one, but also the safety of policies and programs of the outgoing government.
‘‘For this, we remain grateful to the Almighty, and to citizens of Nigeria for sticking with our party,” he said.
In accepting his appointment as Grand Patron of the Arewa Young Lawyers’ Forum, the presidential spokesman urged members of the association to be at the vanguard of promoting the study and practice of the legal profession in the northern states.
“To build and secure democracy in our communities, you need lawyers and journalists as its guardians and protectors. Without one, the other will not be successful,” he admonished them.
The Chairman of AYLF, Mr. Olayinka Jimoh, craved the support of the Presidency in giving strategic training to young wigs to enhance their leadership roles in society.
Other members of the forum at the meeting were Audu Umaru, National Welfare Director (Borno); Ahmad Khalil, National Treasurer (Yobe); and Paul Gbande, Director of Publicity (Benue).