Sule Lamido, former governor of Jigawa State, has narrated how the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) forced some opposition members to join its fold.
Mr Lamido, a chieftain of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), spoke on Thursday while inaugurating eight election campaign committee in Dutse, Jigawa State capital.
He alleged that the ruling party is using alleged corruption indictment to hunt members of the opposition who have refused to join them.
The former governor said this was the tool used to force Senator Godswill Akpabio, a former governor of Akwa Ibom and Musiliu Obanikoro, former defence minister to leave the party.
Messrs Akpabio and Obanikoro were members of the PDP until their defection to the ruling party. While the former governor defected in August, the former minister abandoned the party for APC last year.
“Now in this current political dispensation, if you steal public funds and ‘stash’ them in the bank and you are a member of opposition, they will tell you to come back to APC,” the former governor said.
“They will forgive you, but if you refuse, they will prosecute you. That is how Messrs Akpabio and Obanikoro were forced to leave PDP for APC,” he added.
Lamido also condemned the TraderMoni scheme spearheaded by vice president, Yemi Osinbajo.
“Nigerians are suffering. For three years, they did not do anything. Now that they sense defeat, they have started giving out money.
“This is not the type of politics we learnt. Previously, it is the people who financed their own cause and if a leader disagrees with the people, they will call him to order. Now, politics has become a business venture for politicians to make money,” Mr Lamido said.
He called on PDP members in the state who left the party for the APC to have a rethink and return to the party while urging those remaining to woo the state governor to the PDP.
“Also it is your responsibility to go and woo Governor Muhammad Badaru to PDP because he will not survive the task ahead,” he said.
Mr Lamido charged the members of the committee to work for the success of PDP in the state and its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar.
