The Presidential campaign of the All Progressives Congress and its Peoples Democratic Party counterpart on Monday clashed over the refusal of the former to honour an invitation to hold a live debate on national issues.
According to the APC presidential campaign, its candidate, Maj. Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), was turning down an invitation to hold a debate with President Goodluck Jonathan because there were more serious campaign issues.
The APC campaign explained that its candidate was commencing a series of town hall meetings across the nation as part of his deliberate strategy of campaign ahead of the February 14 presidential election.
This was contained in a statement signed by the APC presidential campaign Director of the Media, Garba Shehu.
He explained that Buhari and his running mate, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo would interact and explain directly to citizens the policy thrust of their envisaged administration and how the set objectives would be achieved.
The statement said the town hall meetings which started in Lagos on Monday, with a robust interaction between Buhari/Osibanjo and the Organised Private Sector would be taken to other parts of the nation.
According to him, the party is compelled to chart this course because of the compelling need to have person-to-person interactive sessions during which pertinent questions will be posed to the candidates and responses provided.
In response, the PDP Presidential Campaign Organisation said it condemned the contempt with which the APC presidential candidate had held Nigerians with his consistent refusal to participate in live television debates with President Goodluck Jonathan.
The spokesperson for the PDP presidential campaign, Femi Fani-Kayode, in a statement in Abuja said Buhari’s decision to shun another debate organised by the Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria and Channels Television was despicable.
He urged Nigerians to ensure the rejection of Buhari at the poll as a just recompense for his action.