JUST IN: Uneducated people drive grassroots politics – APC chair, Adamu

The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, Tuesday, tasked the APC Professionals Forum to deploy their wealth of experience at the grassroots level, which he said was propelled by ‘uneducated’ people.

This is as he expresses concerns that Nigerians are not giving the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), the recognition he deserves despite the giant strides and laudable ‘achievements’ recorded over the years.

The APC chair made the clarification when the APF paid him an advocacy visit at the National Secretariat of the party on Tuesday in Abuja.

A worried Adamu disclosed that when the administration of grassroots politics was left in the hands of such uneducated persons, it made its leadership quite vulnerable.

He said, “We are planning to organise a national conference where all the major stakeholders will have a forum to discuss.

“One thing we want you to pay attention to and see how you can be of help is the activity of the party at the grassroots. It is very critical. It is driven by those who are uneducated thus the leadership at that level is very vulnerable.

“We need to imbibe the culture of an enlightened membership driven by knowledge. We don’t have to all be graduates or diploma holders but an enlightened mind is an open mind.

“The party will not hesitate to tap from your wealth of knowledge to move the party forward. We will take a look at what you have to see if it is in line with what we want to do.”

The national chairman also expressed frustration that the lofty achievements and gains made by Buhari over the years were not being given the needed recognition.

According to him, the president is receiving negative reviews because of poor publicity and inadequate enlightenment campaign.

He said, “All the good things that have happened in this administration have not received the kind of publicity it deserves. See the social programme that this government is having for teachers, farmers, market women and school feeding programme.

“These are critical programmes that have not been undertaken by the Peoples Democratic Party for the 16 years they were in government. We are doing it but nobody praises government for it. All that we get is criticism. If we get ourselves involved in positive reporting of what is happening, the electorate will know the difference. They will know what is the truth.”

“We have the misfortune of not having the efforts of this government getting to the grassroots in terms of positive publicity of what this government is doing. All that those who care to talk want to say is the negative aspect of this government.

“We know that all over the world, the opposition is seen as the underdog and so there is apparent sympathy for them. I have no quarrel with this. Go and sympathise with them but call a spade a spade. Don’t give a dog a bad name in order to hang it. This is what we are experiencing.”