A women group, the Grassroots Women National Conference has drummed support for the political aspiration of Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP. The group which spoke in Abuja on Sunday in a communiqué signed by its National Coordinator, Mrs Amina Jambo, said only emergence of Atiku and his running mate, Mr Peter Obi could salvage Nigeria from myriad of its current socio-economic problems. It blamed the ruling All Progressives Congress (APAC) for the spate of insecurity, unemployment, economic hardship as experienced by citizens of the country. “We all are familiar with the current state of affairs of our nation and the many challenges the leadership and citizens are grappling with on a day-to-day basis. “It is beginning to appear to us that the APC-led administration is determined to run this nation aground and place its citizen under persistent hardship. “Our debt profile has risen to unprecedented heights in a way never seen before, borrowing and spending bazaar witnessed by any administration in Nigeria history. “The APC-led administration has so far borrowed in 4 years surplus of what the PDP borrowed in 16 years with most if not all of what they borrowed can’t accounted for. “Unemployment has not only worsened under this APC government; most Nigerians wonder where the next meal will come from. “The government is busy compromising institutions of state, from security agencies and anti-corruption bodies to INEC. They have been turned into tools in the hands of the APC for intimidation and persecution of the opposition,’’ it said. The group identified women, youths and children as the worst hit category of the Nigerian masses under the present government, calling on the electorate to vote massively for the PDP candidate. “In all of this, it is the women, youth and children who are worst hit by the effects of APC’s poor governance. “The sheer numbers of women registered in the IDP camps spread across the country as a result of violence, terrorism and insecurity only goes to show thee callous negligence of their responsibility to protect life and property. “We the Grassroots women and youth of the country have thus decided to make our voices heard in the fight to kick out hunger, killings and violence; the hallmarks of the abysmal APC’s administration. “We hereby throw our support and weight behind the Atiku/Obi candidacy and urge all Nigerian women and youth to rise up and put an end to the reign of poverty, violence and division as witnessed in this rudderless APC Government,’’ it said.
