The All Progressives Congress (APC) has urged former Senate Chief Whip, Ali Ndume, to address his concerns privately with President Bola Tinubu, rather than making public criticisms of the administration’s policies.
Bala Ibrahim, the APC National Publicity Director, gave this advice during an interview with The PUNCH on Sunday.
He acknowledged that while everyone has the right to express their opinion in a democracy, senior party figures like Ndume should be mindful of their statements before going public.
Ndume, who represents Borno South Senatorial District, recently called on President Tinubu to alleviate the suffering of Nigerians before things spiral out of control.
In a statement issued on Friday in Abuja, he attributed harmful policies and reforms to individuals close to the President, claiming they were aimed at destabilizing the administration.
“Those who are bent on making the President look bad will stop at nothing in inflicting pain on Nigerians through the so-called reforms until things get out of hand, and the blame will be on President Tinubu,” Ndume warned.
He further advised the government to tackle the issue of hyperinflation, which has been aggravated by the continuous rise in prices of essential goods and services.
This marks yet another critical intervention from Ndume, who faced backlash from the APC earlier this year for his public criticisms of Tinubu.
His vocal disapproval led to the party’s request that the Senate relieve him of his position as Chief Whip, though he later apologized. Despite his apology, the Senate has yet to reinstate him in the role.
When asked if the APC was concerned about Ndume’s recent comments, Ibrahim said that the lawmaker should act with caution.
“In a democracy, people have the right to own opinion and ventilate their positions without anyone suppressing it. Ali Ndume is one of the President’s advisers at large. If you happen to belong to the same party as the President, you must share certain things with him because he is working on the policies or agenda of the party,” Ibrahim said.
“As a senior party member, a legislator and former Chief whip for that matter, Ndume is an adviser by extension to all the leaders in our party. Therefore, he has ways of reaching out to them in private without necessarily going public. People must take note of their position and the fact that they have followers who will go to an extent to assess them based on what they say or do.
“Many people hold Ndume in high esteem. So he must always weigh his words for fear of being misquoted or misinterpreted. But I want to believe he is doing so in good faith. Whether the APC is disappointed or will consider any sanction in a decision to be taken by the party.”
Ndume’s removal as Chief Whip followed his public criticism of Tinubu during a live broadcast on Arise TV, where he claimed that the President was unaware of the suffering Nigerians were enduring.
His remarks triggered a swift response from the APC, leading to his replacement by Senator Tahir Monguno of Borno North, as directed by the party’s leadership.
Despite this, Ndume later apologized to the APC’s National Working Committee in a private meeting, where he admitted regret for his actions.
