A former Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof Attahiru Jega, has stated that the two Nigerian leading political parties have failed to alleviate poverty and the sufferings of Nigerians.
Jega pointed out that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the leading opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP) could not give Nigerians competent leaders but only people in their camps.
He added that the two parties failed to transform Nigeria despite the number of years they both spent in government.
According to Daily Trust, Jega made this known in an interview on Monday, noting that Nigerians had suffered serious setback in the hands of the two parties.
Jega said, “There is no doubt that the ruling elites in the country cannot transform the country into a better one. They have been in power for all these years but nothing has changed. The dominant parties; that is PDP and APC; they have closed the opportunity of recruiting good and competent people into the system of leadership.
“They only give chances to people in their camp to continue ruling us. And this has prevented many people particularly the youths from joining politics; they always think it is a bad thing.
“So there is a great need to have competent people who recognise the need to change our development trajectory and save the country at large.”
However, APC Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Yekini Nabena, dispelled Jega’s claims, saying the APC was healing the wounds it met on ground and was therefore not a failure.
“Is he (Jega) going to manufacture new politicians into his PRP? They are just political scavengers. The APC has not failed as he claimed and will never fail Nigerians.
“We all know that PDP was a failure and that was why Nigerians changed leadership of the country. So the APC is healing the wounds; it is not a failed party,” he added.
