Former National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, John Oyegun, has warned that Nigeria’s very existence is under threat, declaring that urgent collective action is required to rescue the country.
Oyegun spoke on Thursday in Benin City, Edo State, at an event where veteran journalist and publisher, Dele Momodu, formally joined the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
Addressing party members and supporters, Oyegun said the country was approaching a critical point, stressing that the actions taken in the coming months would determine Nigeria’s future.
Oyegun said, “Today, we are sitting side by side again in a modern existential struggle because the life of this country depends on what you sitting there are going to do in the next few months.
“It isn’t a campaign yet, we are warming up. We are gathering strength.”
Oyegun described Momodu’s decision to join the ADC as significant, noting that the media entrepreneur was not a typical politician.
He said, “A fantastic man of integrity and principle, like Dele Momodu, is joining us. For him to be joining us is not, you know, he’s not one of those politicians.
“He’s not a convert; he has always been there. In his capacity as a media man, he was one of those who policed the polity, policed politicians.”
According to Oyegun, Momodu’s move reflected growing frustration among Nigerians.
He said, “Today he has decided enough is enough, he had better join in this struggle personally to make sure that the end result finally is what this country needs, what this country deserves.”
The former APC chairman lamented what he described as decades of hardship endured by Nigerians, using a popular phrase to underscore his point.
Oyegun said, “And I begin here talks of monkey work. How did you reply him? Monkey work, monkey chop.
“The people of this country have carried a burden since independence. The very existence of this country is becoming threatened.”
Oyegun said the ADC was positioning itself as a movement to amplify the voices of ordinary Nigerians and compel leaders to address their needs.
He further stated, “ADC is a movement, a movement that wants to ensure and assure that the people of this country, the long-suffering people of this country, finally get listened to.
“The long-suffering people of this country finally get attended to.”
He added that the party’s focus would be on making citizens’ welfare the core mission of governance.
“Their basic needs become the prime mission of any government in this country because they own this country. They own the wealth of this country,” Oyegun stated.