The People’s Democratic Party on Sunday blamed President Bola Tinubu for awarding visiting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Nigeria’s second-highest national honor: Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger.

Speak with The PONS On Sunday, the Deputy National Youth Leader of the PDP, Timothy Osadolor, described the President’s action as a misplaced priority.

But the Deputy National Organizing Secretary of the ruling All Progressives Congress, Nze Chidi Duru, kicked the bucket, arguing that the President had done nothing unprecedented.

The PDP’s criticism comes hours after Tinubu awarded Modi the country’s highest honor during the Nigeria-India bilateral meeting in the Abuja presidential election campaign.

The President said the award was presented to the Indian Prime Minister as a token of appreciation for their partnership and bilateral relationship.

He said: “Nigeria values ​​its excellent relationship with India. We are working to deepen and broaden this, to the mutual benefit of our two friendly countries. Historically, you’ve done well. Winning three consecutive elections in a complex society is an achievement we greatly respect.

“Today I will convey to you, the Prime Minister of India, the national honor of Nigeria, the Grand Commander of the Order of Niger. This is to emphasize Nigeria’s appreciation and commitment to India as a partner,” Tinubu said.

On his part, Modi commiserated with Nigeria over the recent floods that have ravaged several cities across the country, including Maiduguri in Borno State.

The Indian Prime Minister promised to support Nigeria with 20 tons of aid material.

“We had a very productive conversation with President Tinubu. We talked about adding momentum to our strategic partnership. There is immense scope for ties to flourish even further in sectors such as defence, energy, technology, trade, healthcare, education and more,” Modi said.

The PDP, however, expressed disappointment with Tinubu and wondered why he chose to bestow the country’s second highest national honor purely on the basis of friendship.

The PDP National Working Committee member stressed that while the President has the right and privilege to confer national honor on anyone, there must be criteria to show why they deserve that honor.

“It’s not something you give out for the sake of friendship and all that. I don’t know what the Indian Prime Minister has done to justify this honor. But this is the second highest honor in the country. It’s a misplacement of priorities.

“I thought the President should have asked the Indian Prime Minister how the Indian economy has gone from being the poverty capital of the world to one of the fastest growing economies in the world today. The biggest tech giants in the world right now are all Indians.

“Just look at Microsoft, Silicon Valley in America and startups. They are all run and set up by Indians. I would have thought that Tinubu, in a bid to fill the gap in his cabinet, would have been humble enough to ask the Prime Minister to give him an idea on how he could help his government and Nigerians. No giving out unnecessary awards that the man only needs for photos and comments,” he said.

The PDP leader then took another attack on the current government, saying it would not stop performing some of its so-called theater shows.

Osadolor also wondered whether the President has taken the liberty to ask the visiting Prime Minister and his delegation the right questions on investments and how Nigeria can borrow a leaf from the Indians to take the country out of the forests.

He said, “Tinubu is not serious. He must leave frivolities for bigger issues. Now that the Indian Prime Minister has taken it upon himself to visit Africa, we do indeed have a significant and sizable Indian community in Nigeria. But to what end can we maximize and leverage these businesses?

“Are we asking the right questions, looking for the right investments and pushing for the right policies? But this government’s distraction is becoming one too many. I think President Tinubu should wake up to these media gimmicks and focus on the real issues.

“Nigerians are starving and dying. The technologies that Indians are currently deploying globally will go a long way in solving most of these fundamental challenges.”

But Duru, Deputy National Organizational Secretary of the APC, expressed concern that the PDP was not playing its role as a responsible opposition.

He said: ‘I think the question is whether there is a precedent. The next question then is whether it is within the limits of Mr. President’s power to grant such an award. If so, has the process been approved? Once all these questions are answered in the affirmative, it becomes the discretion of Mr. President to award such honorary award to whomever he wishes.

“That said, it is also important to underline that we must go beyond the politics of emotions to tackle the problem. So the PDP is more than welcome to continue playing the role of opposition, which is admirable.

“However, we would like to see a situation where they, with respect, put on the table how we can make Nigeria a lot better and better, thereby addressing the issues we face as a country. I’m talking about things like how do we put food on the table, create a better environment for businesses to thrive, and create a more level playing field. These are things that should worry us all more than chasing shadows.”

Meanwhile, a United States-based Nigerian security expert, Dr. Sylvester Okere, Sunday that the Indian-Nigerian partnership would secure the people’s assets.

Okere, one of the personalities scheduled to be organized in India by the Central Association of Private Security Industry from November 21 to 22, 2024, said CAPSI’s invitation for the 19th Security Leadership Summit 2024 in New Delhi came at a time when India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Nigeria for a state visit.

Okere will speak on the ‘India-Nigerian Partnership in Securing People and Assets’ as well as other critical security issues affecting both countries.

The PUNCH concluded that CAPSI, the umbrella organization of the Indian private security industry, has ties with some of the leading global security education organizations such as the World Association of Detectives, the International Federation of Protection Officers and the US-based Association of Investigation and Security Agencies. Regulators and the British-based Security Institute for the training and placement of trained youth abroad.

Okere said: “This visit to Nigeria by the Indian Prime Minister will pave the way for high-level discussions between the two presidents, with a focus on strengthening cooperation in areas such as trade, technology, energy and education.”