…says APC ballooned Nigeria’s debt by 1,500%, shrunk economy by nearly 50%
Former presidential candidate, Dr Gbenga Olawepo Hashim has called on Nigerians across political, ethnic, and religious lines to unite and rescue the country from what he described as “the evil that the All Progressives Congress (APC) has become.”
In a strongly worded statement released on Monday, Hashim accused the ruling party of wrecking Nigeria’s economy, deepening poverty, and dividing the nation along ethnic and religious lines.
“Nigerians must unite to defeat the evil that the APC has come to represent, regardless of party affiliations, ethnic differences, or religion,” he declared. “The mindless policies of increased poverty, high inflation, and economic decline are ravaging all Nigerians equally, without asking whether you are Christian, Muslim, or animist.”
Hashim painted a grim picture of Nigeria’s economic decline under the APC led government, describing the party’s decade long rule as a monumental failure.
“The APC’s ten years of consistently wrong policies have wrecked our national economy,” he said. “They contracted our GDP from $574 billion in 2014 to less than $259 billion today, a disaster unparalleled in economic history.”
He further accused the ruling party of plunging the nation into unsustainable debt, describing the scale of fiscal irresponsibility as “unforgivable.”
“The APC ballooned our national debt from ₦12 trillion at the end of 2014 to about 198 trillion now, an increase of over 1,500%. That is economic vandalism,” Hashim said.
He warned Nigerians against falling for the APC’s tactics of ethnic and regional division, insisting that the crisis facing the nation transcends tribal politics.
“We should never allow APC handlers to get away with their game of pitching the South against the North,” he said. “This is not an ethnic issue, it is a question of national survival.”
According to Hashim, the pain of inflation, hunger, and joblessness cuts across all regions and religions, and the solution lies in unity and shared resolve to rebuild the country.
“Hunger has no tribe. Poverty has no religion. The evil is one, and so must our response be,” he said.
On insecurity, Hashim lamented what he described as the “complete breakdown of law and order” under the APC government.
“At the security front, the nation is bleeding profusely,” he said. “From kidnapping to terrorism, no part of the country is safe. We cannot stop insecurity unless we send the APC out of power.”
He noted that insecurity has crippled agriculture, discouraged investment, and worsened the already fragile economic situation.
Hashim called on all opposition parties and political leaders to close ranks and work together toward rescuing the country, emphasizing that the unity of purpose was more important than being in a single party.
“For my fellow political leaders in the opposition, I call on everyone to unite,” he appealed. “We don’t all have to be in one party, but our unity must be built around shared programmes, particularly transparent elections and electoral reforms.”
Hashim expressed confidence that Nigerians are ready for real positive change and that the APC would lose in any fair contest.
“It does not matter how many presidential candidates contest against the APC,” he said. “As long as the election is free and fair, APC will fail by the grace of God, because current polling shows the party performing below 20% in both North and South.”
Hashim concluded by calling on citizens to rise above fear, partisanship, and ethnic sentiment to reclaim the nation from decay.
“This is a moral call to action,” he said. “Nigeria can no longer survive on borrowed time or borrowed money. The APC has pushed us to the edge; now is the time to stand up and push back.”
