PDP Members Who Defected to APC Made a ‘Foolish Mistake’ – Gov Yero

Governor  Mukhtar Yero of Kaduna State on Monday  declared  that members of the PDP   who defected to the APC   made a “foolish mistake.’’

Yero, while swearingin his Special Adviser, Political Matters and two Permanent Secretaries, said it was unwise for anyone to abandon what he had laboured to build for an uncertainty.

“It is a foolish mistake to abandon what one has built in search of something uncertain elsewhere,” the News Agency of Nigeria quoted him as saying.

He was apparently referring to the defection of PDP  governors and some prominent members  of the party  in the state, including two of its past state chairmen,  to the APC.

The five governors are Rotimi Amaechi (Rivers),  Aliyu   Wamakko  (Sokoto),   Rabiu Kwakwanso (Kano), Abdulfatah Ahmed (Kwara) and Murtala Nyako(Adamawa).

Yero told the new appointees  that  the challenges in the PDP were  not insurmountable but required continued engagement of all stakeholders for it to be settled amicably.

He said, “Let me advise you, especially those holding political offices, to remain in one place and regard your positions today as ordained by God.

“Tomorrow, we will all be forgotten when new people take over leadership; that is part of life.

“So do not allow yourselves to be lured or deceived into abandoning your party to join the opposition.’’

But Amaechi, Nyako  and Ahmed dismissed Yero’s  statement that they made a ‘foolish mistake’ as illogical.

They said   contrary to the Kaduna State governor’s position, they   took a wise political decision.

Amaechi,   through   the Chief of Staff, Government House, Port Harcourt, Chief Tony Okocha, pointed out that those who left the PDP noticed that it  was no longer what it used to be.

He said, “When you are in a sinking ship and find an escape route, would you waste a second before deciding to leave? An American philosopher once said, ‘If the kitchen is too hot, the best decision to take is to leave the kitchen’.

“That is exactly what some members of the PDP that moved to the APC did. The defectors took a wise decision. The PDP is dead and as you can see, only the carcass is remaining.

“Very soon, the Kaduna State governor will realise that he is alone in Kaduna PDP. The ominous signs that the PDP is heading for extinction are there for everyone to see and those leaving the party have no reason to regret. They should rest assured that they have not taken any foolish decision.”

Also,  Ahmed, who spoke through his spokesperson, Dr. Muyideen Akorede, said there was nothing like a mistake in his decision to abandon the PDP.

He added that he  was   preoccupied with delivering  the dividends of democracy to the people of the state and had therefore put the PDP behind him.

Nyako’s  Director of Press, simply asked, “Have governors who defected from other parties into the PDP regretted?”